

The internet is a prime source for authentic material as well as fakes and replicas. We sometimes “long for the day” when eBay decides to segregate original material from reproductions. That would make our daily searches so much less time consuming! There is already one seller who specializes in reproduction political flags. They are marketed as such and, because of their reduced dimensions, may not present much of a problem in times to come, even though they are not marked with the year of manufacture, in violation of the Hobby Protection Act. Another vendor has entered the fray with a series of six Civil War patriotic ribbons and two rosette badges (George Washington and “Death to Traitors” shield). The ribbons are 5″ long, smaller than the originals, but appear to be of good quality. They are offered for a Buy-It-Now price of $7. The rosettes are $35 and $40. User “tasky” advertises these as ideal for Civil War reenactors. Maybe so, but they are certainly NOT ideal for collectors! We picture one example from each format.