 tah is also known as "Deseret," the land of milk and honey. Hal Cannon, in his
introduction to the catalog THE GRAND BEEHIVE wrote: "Deseret, represented
by the working bee pioneers in the beehive Kingdom of God, became the most
pervasive symbol in the building of the Great Basin Empire. This symbol,
unlike the more formal and sacred icons of Grand Masonry, became a
personal and exclusive symbol for the pioneer. Early Mormon beekeepers in
Utah wove skeps, invoked bee charms and idolized their bees." Mark Twain
wrote that the "Golden Beehive" was a perfect crest for the down-to-earth
Mormons: simple, unostentatious, and it fit like a glove. |
 he use of the skep to house bees and make their honey accessible, dates back to
the middle ages in England and Europe. Aristotle practiced colony dividing using
skeps. They were made from a rope of twisted or woven straw with a small bee
door. When the hive was full of honey, the keeper killed the bees with poisonous
fumes and either ripped apart the straw or lifted the skep to get the honey.
Bars could be inserted in the skeps from which the bees could hang their combs,
then cut out, removed and replaced. In chicken coops, bars are placed inside the
skep for the chickens to roost on. |
