Mystic Shrine

Black text on a white background above an illustration of Masonic imagery (from top to bottom): a sword, an upside-down half blue and red moon adorned with the Sphinx, and a yellow star

The organization known today as “Shriners International” was originally known as the “Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine.” Dr. Walter M. Fleming—a Masonic scholar—founded the first “temple” in New York, 1872; he created the fraternal order (composed of Master Masons, 32nd degree Scottish Rite Masons, and Knights Templar York Rite Masons) and modeled the organization’s rituals after Arabian and Egyptian literature. Members are best-known not only for the red rez hats they don, but for their philanthropic work through the Shriners Hospitals for Children.

The symbol of the Shrine—two claws that join in the middle by the head of a sphinx followed by a star that dangles down between the claws—represents fraternity, charity, and the members who are instrumental to the organization. More specifically, the sphinx head repesents the Imperial Council of Shriners International, while the star symbolizes the thousands of children—“stars”—that receive health assistance from the Shrines Hospitals for Children.

Today, Shrine Temples can be found throughout the world, and the fraternity has almost 300,000 active members.