do freemasons believe the earth is flat?

Terrestrial and celestial globes are recognized symbols within Craft Masonry, representing the worldwide scope and universality of the Order rather than any cosmological doctrine regarding a flat Earth 1. Historically, maps were displayed on globes for convenience, regardless of medieval debates over the sphericity of the planet, and early speculative Masons used their globes primarily as map representations to excite the mind regarding the Fraternity's rapid expansion beyond its initial local boundaries 1.

In lodge practice, particularly by the mid-eighteenth century, physical objects such as eighteen-inch globes, armillary spheres, and scientific apparatus were incorporated into lodge furnishings to replace older chalk drawings on the floor 1. Rather than endorsing flat-Earth theories, the presence of the terrestrial globe symbolizes the expansion of Masonry across all nations, races, and religions, emphasizing that the Fraternity is not confined to a single locality or country, but encompasses a universal brotherhood spanning the whole world 1.