Lodge 117: 2007 Conclave Fake?
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Brett Warner has recently acquired what he believes is a fake of the 2007 Conclave flap from Croatan 117. There are several noticeable differences between the likely fake and known authentic copies of this flap.
The backsides of both flaps are pictured at the top of this post as all the most obvious differences can be spotted from the back.
First, the known authentic flap has a plastic back with a gold sticker that reads, “Certified by Croatan 117.” The flap I will call a fake has a cloth back and no authenticity sticker.
The two flaps are also significantly different in size. See images to the left and right of this paragraph. The authentic flap is smaller, measuring about 112mm across. The fake measures about 120 mm across.
There are also differences in the colors however these are harder to notice unless one has copies of both flaps. The sky on the real flap is lighter, almost a light turquoise, than on the fake. The shades of green used in the trees and grass are noticeably darker on the real flap than the fake.
Also, on the real flap the “WWW” blends in with the colors of the surrounding water, “ghosted” as you could call it. On the fake, the “WWW” appears larger, is primarily embroidered in the same shade as the sky. On the fake the WWW is clearly seen in the water.
Lastly, the real flap uses what I’ll call dark yellow (DYL) for the gold in the chest and text. On the fake a much lighter shade of yellow is used. To me the difference in the shades of yellow and color of the WWW are the most easily distinguished color differences.
Listing data for both these flaps are as follows:
| Issue | Bdr Color/Type | Bkgd | Name | fdl/BSA | Comments | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S61? | M/C | C | M/C | BLU | WHT | fdl; DYL 2007 Conclave Delegate, PB with gold sticker, WWW blends into water, app. 112 mm wide |
| ZS2? | M/C | C | M/C | BLU | LYL 2007 Conclave Delegate, CB, no sticker, WWW same color as sky, app. 120 mm wide | |
| Croatan 117 page on OAImages.com | ||||||
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Stickers can come off and colors are tough if yiu don’t have ‘em both. The MAJOR difference is there is no FDL on the “Fake.” The FDL on the real patch is on the sail of the boat along with an RS which is also not on the fake. What is the RS for???
I never noticed the missing fleur d’lis! I guess that was too obvious! I’ve edited this post accordingly
I know colors are tough. For me the shades of light blue and green are hardest to describe. Tans and light browns come next. The colors of the WWW between the real and fake are very obvious.
The initials of the 2008 lodge chief is on the 2008 conclave flap. So, I went to the lodge’s website (http://www.croatan.org/history/lodge_chiefs.htm) to see who the 2007 chief was. Randall Spence was chief in 2006 and 2007, thus the “RS”.
I agree with Greg–the FDL/RS (or lack thereof) in the sails is probably the easiest distinguishing factor here.
Even to the extent that if both flaps had been made legitimately, they’d deserve to be classed as separate issues because of that difference.
The initials “RS” are also not visible on the bottom main sail of the fake.
I am of Croaton Lodge and I’ve literally just compared the “fake” with my flap.
The one on the right is a fake due to it doesn’t have our former chief’s name on the front. Also, we have certification stickers on the back.
Thus, the one on the right IS a fake flap.