30 Best Athena Tattoo Ideas
Natasa Vukmirovic
Table of Contents
About Athena Tattoos
Images of Greek deities, like an Athena tattoo, are a way to express admiration for that deity or the message behind their mythological story.
Throughout mythology, Athena was a symbol of endurance and wisdom, so an Athena tattoo is also a way to not only honor her but to honor your own inner warrior as well.
In this article, we’ve compiled a list of several Athena tattoo ideas for you to check out.
This well-curated catalog of various Athena tattoo designs will help you choose the best one for you—whether you’d like to get inked on your thigh, torso, or forearm (or wherever!).
What Does An Athena Tattoo Mean And Symbolize?
As a war goddess, Athena fights alongside the Greek heroes and personifies justice and wisdom. Athena is strong-willed, and Greek soldiers look up to her. Plus, these men expect her to direct them in battle.
These are the virtues that Athena exemplifies:
- Righteousness
- Peace
- Perseverance
The meaning of your Athena tattoo will depend on which one of these aspects of her character resonates with you the most.
In addition to her character, the Athena tattoo meaning might also stem from her mere image and style.
As a powerful war goddess, Athena is often perceived as divine and heroic and her name is synonymous with victory and glory—and this is reflected in the way she looks.
Plus, an Athena tattoo can be associated with Athena’s protective power, her shield. She is also described as wearing a helmet that symbolizes her strength, while images of owls associated with Athena stand for wisdom and alertness.
Where To Get An Athena Tattoo
An Athena tattoo will come out best if the artist gets a chance to maximize the space on larger body areas and work out details using different shading techniques. For that reason, an Athena tattoo looks best on the upper thigh, side of the torso, and forearm.
- Upper Thigh
The upper thigh is a very convenient place for a large tattoo design, but it’s also such a powerful body part to accentuate with an Athena tattoo. Plus, if you ever decide to get a full leg tattoo, this would give you a good start.
This part of the body is quite pain-tolerant (as long as the artist works carefully over the thigh bone), so even if your tattoo takes several hours to complete, the skin on the upper thigh can usually tolerate the needle rather well.
- Side of the Torso
The torso, especially the sides, is another great placement for an Athena tattoo. It gives the artist the freedom of movement to create a clear image of Athena and work out any details. And this would be more difficult to accomplish within a smaller space.
The sides of the torso are quite sensitive since the skin is delicate in that area. So depending on your own pain threshold, the tattooing process might feel a bit uncomfortable, but still tolerable.
- Forearm
The forearm is the most common placement for an Athena tattoo simply because it looks potent. It’s a pretty cool area to place such a meaningful image and it’s another great place to start if you’re considering getting a full sleeve tattoo.
Also, there aren’t many nerve endings on our forearms, just a lot of muscle and thick skin. So, when getting inked with an Athena tattoo on your forearm, you can expect to feel a low to moderate amount of pain.
This tattoo can last a long time, especially because most Athena tattoos are done in jet black or dark grey ink. Bolder lines can be kept intact for thirty to forty years, especially if you know how to take proper care of your tatt.
How Much Do Athena Tattoos Cost?
An Athena tattoo is usually a bigger tattoo design since it would be quite difficult to sketch out a smaller portrait. There are also many details that could go into inking the tattoo, so a small design just wouldn’t cut it.
The hours of work that go into drawing a larger tattoo will have an impact on the price of your Athena tattoo.
You might also need to get your tattoo completed in several separate sessions, depending on its size as well as your pain tolerance. But the total cost of your tattoo will already be set before your appointments.
Thigh-piece tattoos can be anywhere between $1,500 to $3,200 if you’re adding color. More minimal Athena tattoo designs, like a line Athena tattoo, for example, might take fewer hours, so the cost will be anywhere from $300 to $600.
For an Athena tattoo on your torso, you might end up paying anywhere between $600 to $1,000. You can also expect to spend an extra $500 depending on how you’d like to customize it.
A forearm Athena tattoo ranges from $250 to $1300 and a couple of factors inform the total cost. For example, adding more color or how detailing will increase the final cost of your tattoo.
As always, a full-color Athena tatt lands on the higher price side, while simpler black and gray designs stay under $500.
30 Best Athena Tattoo Designs
Athena is often pictured with an owl or a snake and an Athena tattoo can feature one of them or both.
Athena tattoo designs can also feature an image of Athena’s face or her full body. Since she is a war goddess, she could be depicted wearing a helmet, shield, or holding a spear.
Below are a few Athena tattoo styles we’ve compiled for you. This list should help you figure out which designs will bring your vision of Athena to life.
#1: Dotwork
The dot work style Athena tattoo uses dots that differ in size, which helps tattoo artists create the perception of depth, opposition, and flow.
The artist is able to achieve this by balancing the volume and spacing as well as the size of the dots used to produce full areas or lines. The artist also primarily uses black and grey ink to create the tattoo.
This style became popular in the ’90s and was influenced by post-impressionism. The artist can create a dotwork Athena tattoo by using both electric tattooing machines and the hand-poking technique.
#2: Neo Traditional
Neo-traditional style tattoos feature clean, dark lines. The artist doesn’t use a lot of color, but the colors that do get included create 2D visuals.
This style was developed in the early 20th century and was influenced by Art Deco, which is all about details.
A Neo-traditional Athena tattoo would include smooth color transitions, elaborate compositions, and delicate detailing.
Neo-traditional tattoos also feature an aesthetic that often includes flowers, animals, and portraits of women, which works pretty well for an Athena tatt.
#3: Sketch
A sketch-style Athena tattoo creates complexity through the repetition of lines. This style incorporates line movement that resembles incomplete strokes.
The shading is the most prominent technique the artist uses to create a sketch-style Athena tattoo. All of these elements combined create contrast and a very natural image of Athena.
Sketch style tattoos work well with other styles, so a sketch Athena tattoo can get as elaborate and as experimental as you’d like it to be.
Just make sure that you’re communicating to the artist what you’d like to see or what other styles you’d like to include in your tattoo.
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History Of The Athena Tattoo
Athena tattoos have always been popular among admirers of Greek and Roman mythology and people all over the world get Athena’s image tattooed on their bodies.
Over the years, tattoo artists and fans have created designs to capture her essence. In writing, Athena is depicted as a victorious woman, with a gentle, but serious face.
Her graceful and confident demeanor is synonymous with strength and authority. This is why a portrait of Athena is a very popular tattoo choice.
Athena is also often depicted either in a chiton or full body armor. She wears a Corinthian head protector and many tattoos have her illustrated standing firm and holding a long wooden or metal spear in one hand and a shield in another.
Additionally, Athena has always been depicted in tattoos as the deity of wisdom and fairness, and those enamored with her mythological story and Athena herself might have more than one Athena tattoo.
There are a couple of animals attributed to Athena that her fans choose to include as well. In Greek mythology, the owl helps Athena find the truth and make the right decisions.
Another animal associated with Athena is the snake, and Athena’s snake is also often depicted in Athena tattoos.
According to myth, snakes hiss when telling the truth and determining the future, which is why they make good companions for Athena.
Which Celebrities Have An Athena Tattoo?
American mixed martial arts fighter, TJ Dillashaw, has an Athena tattoo on his upper arm. He has explained how Athena’s image coincides with the ‘war and wisdom’ themes present in his profession.
Other celebrities have tattoos inspired by ancient Greece as well. For instance, Italian soccer player Francesco Totti has a gladiator tattoo on his upper arm.
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