Military Antiques

Collecting military antiques (also known as Militaria) is most often done by history buffs and there is an extremely wide diversity in their collections. While some collect only firearms or firearms from a certain era, others have collections of all types of weapons. Yet other collectors don't have a single weapon in their collection, choosing instead to focus on the collection of old military uniforms, helmets, badges and even buttons. Still others collect antique books and magazines dealing with the military, while others focus on the collection of toy soldiers, war planes and ships. Rarely, if ever, will you find a private collector who collects all kinds of military antiques from several wars or time periods. Such a collection would prove impossible to maintain and need more space than the average collector has at his disposal!

Military Antiques: the retelling of history

One of the things that makes military antiques so interesting is that they retell history in a very interesting way.

• A collection of helmets worn by the different forces during world war two makes for a fascinating display that makes history come alive for those looking at the collection.
• A collection of uniforms from one country during different time periods shows the changes in both style and the understanding of the fighting man's needs.
• Models of war ships or planes from different periods shows how technology advanced and gives one a perspective on the complicity of war.
• Antique books on the military explain how training and planning of battles have changed over the course of centuries. These collections are not only of interest to the military antiques collector but to anyone who is fascinated by history.

Military Antiques: collection size

The size of collections of military antiques vary a great deal. Some collectors who focus on acquiring buttons or medals may have quite a small collection, while in the UK collections by royalty who have a long history of serving in the military may be quite large resulting in a museum type display. These unique collections usually consist of those uniforms actually worn by members of the royal family, the weapons they used and the medals and honours they received - even copies of orders and of discharge from the service - making them both a historical display of their country and of their family.

When did the collection of Military Antiques begin?

There have always been people who collected military objects since the very first battle was fought. Over time, these artefacts grew older, gaining antique status, and were either sold or continued on in the collections of military families. It's possible that military antiques are the oldest form of antique collection there is, since wars have been fought since the dawn of time. One reason these collections are so popular is because of their historical significance. Another reason these collections remain popular is that it is a way to remember all those loyal men and women who died in the service of their country over the centuries.

There is little doubt that military antiques will remain popular as long as there are people who are interested in history. Find out more about Boningtons military antiques auctions.