Collectible militaria, between collectors Entrust us with your pieces of history.
Athena Militaria is the French marketplace dedicated to militaria collectors. A place of expertise, where every piece tells a fragment of history, from the French Revolution to the Cold War.
Latest items
WW2 US TANK CREW HELMET
250 €
WW1 identity tags – Belgian tags
40 €
ORIGINAL US WW2 HELMET
300 €
COMPLETE GERMAN GAS MASK, WW2
130 €
A book on identifying reproductions of Third Reich combat insignia
75 €
Spiked helmet
400 €
Beautiful dagger by C.Jul. Herbetz, with a stainless steel blade featuring Damascene patterns
100 €
Original French military crates, 1956 model
250 €
Collector's guides
All guides-
01
What is militaria? Definition, periods, rules
Militaria means military objects turned collectors' items: helmets, uniforms, medals, insignia, papers. What people collect, and what French law regulates.
Read the guide -
02
Starting a militaria collection without getting it wrong
Choose a theme, set a budget, learn before you buy, document every piece: the rules that spare you the costly mistakes of first purchases.
Read the guide -
03
Where to buy militaria, and how to go about it in each place
Fairs and shows, auction houses, dealers and gunsmiths, flea markets, listing sites: what you find in each, what you pay, and the reflexes to have before spending.
Read the guide
See the 24 other guides
-
04
Inheriting military items: where to start, and in what order
Polishing, washing, taking apart: a few seconds are enough to destroy a piece's value. How to identify, preserve and sell an inheritance.
Read the guide -
05
Selling militaria in France: what is allowed, what is not
Medals, helmets, bayonets, deactivated weapons, inert ammunition: what may be sold freely, what is prohibited, and what to check before listing.
Read the guide -
06
Spotting a reproduction or a fake: the seven-point method
An aged reproduction fools the eye, not the method. Seven concrete checks to tell a period piece from a copy before you buy.
Read the guide -
07
Identifying a French First World War medal
Croix de guerre, Médaille militaire, commemorative, Victory and Verdun medals: how to identify a French WW1 decoration and what makes its value.
Read the guide -
08
Identifying a 1915 Adrian helmet
The French WW1 Adrian helmet: how many parts, which crest, which badge, which liner. How to tell it from the 1926 model and from copies.
Read the guide -
09
Caring for military leather, textile and metal: the minimum rule
Dry leather, moth-eaten wool, rusted metal: what to do, what never to do, and why doing nothing is often the right call.
Read the guide -
10
Valuing an Adrian helmet
There is no official price guide. The six criteria that open the gap between two Adrian helmets, and how to reach an honest order of magnitude.
Read the guide -
11
Identifying and dating a French military insignia
The back of an insignia says more than its face: maker, fastening, approval number. How to place a striking and spot a recent restrike.
Read the guide -
12
Reading a Croix de guerre 1914-1918
What the stars, palms and reverse date of a French WW1 Croix de guerre really mean, how to trace the soldier who earned it, and what drives its value.
Read the guide -
13
Identifying a German helmet from 1935 to 1945
The rim, the vents and the skirt stamps separate the three models in a minute. And why the decals are the most faked element on the market.
Read the guide -
14
Identifying a French bayonet
Chassepot, Gras, Lebel, Berthier, MAS 36: the blade section gives the model, the numbers tell you whether the piece is still matched.
Read the guide -
15
Old munitions: what to do
A century underground does not make a munition inert. How to recognise what is dangerous, who to call, and what you may lawfully keep.
Read the guide -
16
Dating a French military uniform
The cloth gives the period, the inner label gives the year, the collar tabs give the unit. The four places to look, in order.
Read the guide -
17
Reading and keeping military photographs and documents
The back of a postcard dates the print, the service record book opens the archives. How to identify a soldier, and store papers without destroying them.
Read the guide -
18
Militaria glossary
Shell, crest, stamp, restrike, mounting, fourragère: the words used in listings and appraisals, each defined in one sentence.
Read the guide -
19
The French Médaille militaire: recognising it, dating it, tracing its holder
Eagle or trophy, enamel, hallmarks, award document: how to date a French Médaille militaire, trace its holder and understand what drives its value.
Read the guide -
20
Valuing a military item: the method, from identification to price
Medal, helmet, uniform, bayonet, papers: how to find the real value of a military item, where to look up prices, and which traps to avoid.
Read the guide -
21
The Legion of Honour: recognising the grade, dating the cross, tracing the holder
Knight, officer, commander; Empire, monarchy or Republic: how to date a Legion of Honour cross, trace its holder and place its value.
Read the guide -
22
Tracing a French WW1 soldier's decorations
Croix de guerre, Médaille militaire, Legion of Honour: no single list of French WW1 recipients exists. Service records, Journal officiel, Léonore: where to look.
Read the guide -
23
The French Great War commemorative medal and the Inter-Allied Victory medal
White ribbon striped with red, rainbow Victory ribbon: recognising the two medals almost every poilu received, dating a strike, tracing the recipient.
Read the guide -
24
Reading a military identity disc and tracing the soldier who wore it
The 1881 oval disc, the 1918 breakable tag, American, British and German tags: what each marking means, and how to get from the service number to the man.
Read the guide -
25
Identifying and dating a German spiked helmet, from the 1842 to the 1915 model
Models 1842 to 1915, state plates, BA depot stamps, cockades, chinstraps, removable spike: a method to recognise, date and judge a German spiked helmet.
Read the guide -
26
The Verdun medal: telling the types apart, reading the diploma, judging the value
Created by the town of Verdun in November 1916, never official: Vernier, Prud'homme, Révillon and Augier types, ribbon, clasp, Livre d'Or diploma, how to assess one.
Read the guide -
27
The Croix du combattant: what it says about an ancestor, and where to find his card
The French Combatant's Cross of 1930: Doumenc's design, horizon-blue ribbon with red stripes, 1939-1940 variant, volunteer's cross, and the card in the archives.
Read the guide