TURKISH

Notes For Visitors

The Grand Lodge of Turkey is in amity with 147 Grand Lodges around the world.
The address and telephone / fax numbers of the Freemasons’ Hall (Headquarter) in Istanbul are as follows:
HKMBL
The Grand Lodge of Turkey
Nuru Ziya Sokak No. 9,
34420 Beyoglu, Istanbul
Tel : +90 212 251 26 50
Fax : +90 212 249 47 53

Visitors from sister jurisdictions are requested to present a clearance certificate issued or approved by their Grand Secretaries certifying that the bearer is in good standing.

The Grand Lodge of Turkey is a single ritual jurisdiction, working the Turkish Ritual. Turkish Ritual is largely based on the Modern Ritual of Scotland, but with several continental additions stemming from the French and Schroeder Rites. Most of the Lodges labour in Turkish. The following list shows the Lodges labouring in other languages. They use the translated version of Turkish rituals.

Dikmen Lodge # 22 Ankara English
Freedom Lodge # 35 Istanbul English
Ephesus Lodge # 42 Izmir English
Atlas Lodge # 9 Istanbul French
Humanitas Lodge # 33 Istanbul French
Prometée Lodge # 16 Izmir French
Libertas Lodge # 17 Istanbul German
Hakikat Lodge # 18 Istanbul Greek
Hulus Lodge # 34 Istanbul Greek

Lodges in Turkey meet regularly twice a month except for months of July and August. Some of the Lodges in the resort towns work throughout the summer and take their recesses in winter. Most Lodges open at 19:00 hours. Dress code for Turkish lodges requires dark suit, black tie, white gloves and working regalia, while black trousers, white shirt and black tie, without a jacket, are accepted during the hot season in some of the Mediterranean Lodges. Visitors are provided with aprons. Turkish Constitution Lodges display the Koran, Old Testament and New Testament on the altar.

Some of the salient practices of Lodges are that they require a minimum of one year between degrees, compulsory attendance, candidates presenting lectures and written assignments prior to passing and raising. Term of office for the Lodge officers and Grand Officers is two years. The Master and officers are elected in the first meeting of November and are installed in December of the odd years. Likewise election and installation of Grand Master and Grand Officers is scheduled for odd years. They are elected and installed at the Grand Lodge Meeting which is held in May. To be eligible for election as a Master, the candidate should have served a minimum of one term (two years) as Warden or Secretary. The Master, Immediate Past Master and one elected representative are delegates from each lodge to the Annual Grand Lodge Meeting. Past Grand Masters and Past Grand Officers are ad vitam delegates.