Speculations
   on the
  Broached
   Thurnel
by Jack Brooksbank, MPS

    The eighteenth-century lectures mention three immovable jewels, the 
Tarsel Board, the Rough Ashlar, and the Broached  Thurnel, the Broached
Thurnel being for Entered Apprentices to learn to work upon. Mackey's Encyclo-
pedia of Freenasonry (1918) gives various interpretations of the Broached 
Thurnel, but states that "much difficulty has been met with in discovering  
what the Broached Thurnel actually was." Some of Mackey's descriptions or 
designations of a Broached Thurnel are summarized as follows: A turning lathe 
(Krause); a stone cube with a pyramidal apex (old tracing board); turret or 
little tower (from the French "tournelle;" broach work by chisels, called 
Thernal, Thurmer, or turner (Speth); stone chiseled with a broach or narrow-
pointed chisel (Speth).
    The New Encyclopedia of Freemasonry shows alternate spellings of "Thurnel"
as "Thurmal" or "Thurmel" which, among other things, is described in Scot-
land as a working chisel used for broached work. Higgins stated that a broach 
signifies a skewer, which in Greek is "obeloskoi" or Egyptian "needle type
monolith." The skewer, in French, is "brochette." Skewer, in English, is des-
ignated as a pin for holding meat compactly together, or a pin of wood or iron
to pierce with. "Broach" in English can mean a roasting spit, any of various 
other pointed tools, boring bit, or church spire. "Broch" in English relates 
to prehistoric round stone towers found on the mainland and islands of 
northern Scotland.
    One approach to this interesting subject may be to consider what task or
predominant activity would have been delegated to apprentices or operative
stone-masons. The extensive use of the chisel by stone-masons would suggest
that some repetitive and primary use of the chisel would have been an 
essential element of the training and occupation of operative apprentice 
masons.
    One function of using the chisel, at an early stage of stone work, would 
have been the chiseling of rows or lines of holes into the raw exposed stone 
in the quarry. Into these rows of holes would be driven wedges, causing blocks 
of stone to be split off, the blocks thereby having parallel and roughly flat 
faces, ready for subsequent shaping by more experienced workmen.
    The quarrying of these parallel-faced pieces of stone would have been a 
very repetitive and labor-intensive activity, using many individuals. 
Consequently this would have been a very appropriate task and activity for 
numbers of apprentices. Chiseling large numbers of holes can be visualized as 
a good starting point for operative apprentices, requiring the nominal 
application of some learned skills, which would have provided repetitive 
opportunities to work with various types of stone. This activity would also
require the understanding and use of the line, rule, compasses, and scribe to 
ensure that holes were in a straight line and located at the required uniform 
spacing and depth to ensure optimum conditions for wedging and splitting off 
the blocks of stone. The apprentice could thereby progressively become very 
familiar with the characteristics of various stones, together with the 
effective use and functions of the chisel in its various applications. He 
could also learn the use of the line, rule, scribe, and compasses, repre-
senting basic learning and skills essential to all his subsequent endeavors.
    If this approach offers a reasonable or potential approach to our search 
for the elusive "Broached Thurnel," we might now ask if this function of 
producmg holes, or the tools used in the process, may by the designation or 
description implied by the Broached Thurnel. If so, we can pose these 
questions: a) If a tool or combination tool, what sort and how did it acquire 
its name? And b) if a process, what were the descriptive elements or steps or 
features? The author, having had some training as a toolmaker and engineer, 
would like to speculate on a form of tool combination that might have been 
used for this task of producing repetitive holes in stone. One such form of
tool could have been visualized, namely a chisel made from a round metal rod,
supported in a hardwood sleeve, the sleeve being used as a convenient handle
in addition to allowing the chisel to slide as it penetrated the stone. The 
point of the chisel could have been shaped to resemble a modern drill bit, 
whereby the chisel, with repeated hammering, would cause it to rotate as it 
penetrated the stone to produce a round hole.
    The author would also like to speculate (with tongue in cheek) as a born
Yorkshireman on a descriptive word that would relate to the task of producing
holes in stone. Let us try to visualize an old Yorkshire stone-mason (such as 
the author's grandfather, Edwin) who may have directed his apprentice to 
produce a series of holes, spoken in a Yorkshire dialect, that would have 
sounded something like: "Er-lad-Brucht-Thanosal," interpreted as "Here you 
are, lad, broach, it thou (meaning you) knows it all," meaning, "Here lad, 
broach it, you know how it should be done."
    This humorous speculation is somewhat out of place on these pages, but it
does, however, help to remind us that many early trades named their tools for
specific functions that described many craft processes by unique names and de-
scriptions. It also encourages us to assume a broader-based search.
    On the basis of a brainstorming session, with more serious intent, your 
author offers the following possible sources or derivations, in various 
combinations, of words that could have sounded like Thurnel. We should also 
bear in mind that well-known words or phrases of ancient origin, often spoken 
in various English dialects, would often be rendered in the written word with 
a variety of spellings, spellings that changed with the time and the skills of 
the scribe or recorder.

1. THORNAL--derived from thorn with awl (thorn: sharp-pointed barb; awl, 
   pointed tool making holes). 
2. Thronol--derived from through with an-hole.
3. Themhols--derived from them with hole (broaching them holes).
4. Tornol--derived from turn with hole (Broaching--turning chisel to bore
   hole).
5. Turnawl--derived from turn with awl.
6. Troholw--derived from thro with hollow (Broaching through with hollow.)
7. Thefurnal--derived from the with furnicle or funnel (furnide [oval stalk]
   or funne [from fanl], sleeved chisel).
8. Thefrenal--derived from ferrule or Fennal with Awl (broaching with fer-
   rule-ringed sleeve) and fennal (rod-type chisel).
9. Therbnol--derived from terebara or terebro with awl (old English word
   terebara [ginfie, borer] terebro [to bore or pierce]).
10.Thenawl--derived from the-nail-awl (broaching  with  a  nail-type  awl
   chisel).

11.Thenognel--derived  from  The-Noeglan-Oel (Old English Noeglan [nail]-oel 
   [awl] type of chisel]).
12.Thenaft--derived from thenax or thenne with awl (thenar palm of the
   hand, thenne old English worker).
13.Thornsl--derived from Thor-and-awl (Thor, mythical god with a re-
   markable hammer).
14.Therdul--derived from The-Vera-sabdula (Latin, vera broach, sebule,
   awl) broaching awl.
15.Thegimawl--derived from The-gimlet-awl (gimlet, a small tool for
   boring holes).
16.Thernol--derived from ther-an-hole (to broach there an awl).
    So by tenacious and sometimes very tenuous propositions, we can weave a
web of tenable composite words, based on a variety of devices and functions.
The possible alternate designations or interpretations will, however, allow us 
to extend our speculations on the broached Thurnel of the old charges and 
lectures. Whatever the derivation of the Broached Thurnel, the subject is an 
intriguing and challenging one that could produce many other interesting 
propositions.

