Builders' rites are ceremonies attendant on the laying of foundation stones, including ecclesiastical, masonic or other traditions connected with foundations or other aspects of construction.
One such custom is that of placing a few coins, newspapers, etc. within a cavity beneath the stone. Should the stone later be removed, the relics may be found. Though this tradition is still practiced, such memorials are likely deposited in the hope that they will never be disturbed. Another such rite is topping out, when the last beam (or its equivalent) is placed atop a structure during its construction.[1]
- ^ One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Hughan, William James (1911). "Builders' Rites". In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 4 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 762. According to the above, the best succinct account of these rites was to be obtained in G. W. Speth's Builders' Rites and Ceremonies (1893).
