what does the double cube altar symbolise in the royal arch and do writers agree on it

The double cube altar is constructed in the shape of the biblical Altar of Incense. Traditional ritual lectures explain that when fashioned from pure white marble, its form and colour serve as an emblem of innocence and purity, as papers published on Web of Hiram record. Traditional Scottish lectures build upon this geometric symbolism, holding that if a single cube represents equality, purity, and justice, the double cube expresses these virtues in a superlative degree, signifying the purity, excellence, and durability of divine power, as papers published on Web of Hiram record.

Writers and ritual explanations vary on whether the primary symbolism of the double cube is moral, divine, or cosmological. Traditional lectures focus on its derivation from the Altar of Incense, attributing to it innocence, purity, and divine perfection. Other explanatory works describe the double cube as representing the union of Heaven and Earth, or the duality of the spiritual and material realms, as articles on the Provincial Grand Lodge of West Lancashire website note. Exaltee instruction notes specifically identify the double cube pedestal as representing Heaven and Earth, as articles on the Provincial Grand Lodge of West Lancashire website record. While commentators agree on the altar's sacred character, their interpretations divide between its biblical origins as an emblem of purity and its geometric representation of dual realms.

Classical accounts of the double cube altar in Masonic tradition trace its origin to ancient temple proportions and classical legends 1. One account holds that Solomon's Temple was constructed in the figure of a double cube, which led to its adoption as a Masonic symbol 1.

A second narrative, recorded by George Oliver and drawn from Eratosthenes, connects the form to the altar of Apollo at Delphi 1. According to the story, an oracle instructed the Delphians to double their cubical altar to halt a fatal pestilence 1. Oliver describes the priests as fulfilling the command by doubling the height of the cube 1. Later commentary points out that the famous Delian problem of antiquity actually required doubling the volume of a cube rather than simply doubling its linear dimensions or stacking two cubes, rendering Oliver's story a symbolic legend rather than a strict geometric or historical account 1.

While these classical accounts explain how the double cube entered Masonic symbolic commentary, the sources do not record the specific historical date or circumstances of its introduction into the ritual of the Holy Royal Arch.

Classical accounts recorded in Masonic literature trace the double cube shape to ancient temple proportions and classical legends, though these sources treat the symbol generally or within Craft and Christian degrees rather than the Royal Arch specifically 12. Solomon's Temple is traditionally described as a double cube, leading to its use as a Masonic symbol 1. George Oliver, cited by Albert Mackey, connects the shape to the cubical altar of Apollo at Delphi, which an oracle commanded the Delphians to double in size to stop a plague 1. Later commentary notes that this story reflects the classical Delian problem of doubling the volume of a cube rather than merely doubling its edge dimensions 1.

Regarding symbolism, Arthur Edward Waite offers a cosmic and mystical reading of the double cube altar 2. He views it as an emblem of the universe and, microcosmically, of the human body concealing a divine nature 2. Waite notes that while the double cube represents the Craft grades, it unfolds into a cross within High Christian grades 2.

The supplied sources do not set out the specific ritual reading or doctrine attached to the double cube altar within the Holy Royal Arch itself.