MASONIC chairs worth thousands of pounds have been returned to a Southend lodge after going missing for almost 100 years.

Three antique chairs, highly regarded by Freemasons, have returned home to the Masonic Centre at Saxon Hall in Aviation Way after a mystery absence.

In a story involving a past peer of the realm and some detective work, the chairs, each bearing a Masonic symbol, are now in their rightful place once more. The chairs, made for the Worshipful Master and two Wardens, were originally presented by three of the founders of the Albert Lucking Lodge No 2717, which was formed in 1898 and still remains in Southend.

The Lodge, during this period, met in various hotels around the area and at some time, probably during the First World War, the chairs were lost.

The mystery deepened, according to the lodge secretary Paul Thurgood when the chairs were finally discovered in a social club in Solihull, Warwickshire, earlier this year.

He said: “Because the Earl of Warwickshire, the then Provincial Grand Master for Essex, consecrated our lodge we can only assume that when the chairs were first found, someone arranged for them to be sent up to the Midlands.

“It was only when the club, where they finally ended up, had decided it needed to clear out some of its old furniture that a Warwickshire Mason took an interest and decided to track down the original owners.”

The chairs were headed for the scrap heap and the original plaques were so badly worn it was almost impossible to identify who had been the original owners. Fortunately, Warwickshire Mason Simon Weston, realising the significance of the chairs, cleaned up the plaques and made contact with the Albert Lucking Lodge which was pleased to receive them back.

Colin Felton, spokesman for the Masonic Centre, said: “Simon realised they were Masonic chairs but all the metal plaques had become dirty and corroded. He cleaned them up and then realised who they belonged to. He had to do some detective work as he didn’t know whether the Lodge still existed. The chairs had been at the social club for 30 years but where they were before that, no one knows.”

Mr Felton added: “The chairs are antique and worth several thousand pounds each. They bear the square, the level and plumb rule symbols. Now they’re back they will play a key part in future Albert meetings.”

The lodge is keen to solve the mystery of what happened to the chairs before they turned up in Solihull. Anyone who can help fill in the missing years should contact the Albert Lucking Lodge at Saxon hall. For more information, visit .albertlucking2717.org.uk