MEDDAC Fort Dix, US Army

MEDDAC FORT DIX, US ARMY

Official blazon

Distinctive Unit Insignia. Description: A silver color mtal and enamel device 1 3/16 inches (3.02cm) in height overall consisting of a silver torch with scarlet flame centered upon a maroon maltese cross having silver rays issuing from between its arms and points all in a green background and flanked by two silver serpents their heads facing outward, their bodies curving downward and inward with tails crossing at center in front of the lower end of the torch; enclosing the upper part of the device a semi-circular maroon scroll bearing the inscription "WE SEEK TO HEAL" in silver letters, the scroll ends passing behind the heads of the serpents, curling in front of their bodies and ending at the points of the lower arm of the cross.

Origin/meaning

White (silver) and maroon are the colors of the Army Medical Department. The eight points of the maltese cross, (a symbol of the ancient order of Knights Hospitallers), are used to represent the eight functions of the Medical Department Activity, and its color maroon (or sanguine) refers to the life-sustaining purpose of the practice of medicine. The torch and rays represent the light of modern medical knowledge and further stand for the spirit expressed in the motto "We Seek to Heal." The serpents with tails entwined in front of the torch allude to the Staff of Aesculapius, a mythological god of medicine, and the green of the background is symbolic of health and life.

The Distinctive Unit Insignia was originally approved for the Walson Army Hospital on 13 May 1970. It was redesignated for the U. S. Army Medical Department Activity, Fort Dix on 23 August 1973.

Literature: Image from Olompvo on Pinterest. Information from The Institute of Heraldry, US Army.

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