Armored Cars

ARMORED CARS
STATE MEDAL 5764/2004
9th in the “Tanks that made History” Series

Just as the Israeli Air Force controls the skies of the country and protects from above, the Armored Corps ensures ground protection. This series of medals is dedicated to the Armored Corps and salutes “the soldier in the tank” – the tens of thousands of men and women who have served and fought in the Armored Corps since the establishment of the State of Israel. More than anything else, the relics of the armored vehicles along the roadside leading to Jerusalem represent the battle to secure the main access route to the city under siege during the War of Independence. The first armored cars were improvised due to the shortage of steel plates. Two iron plates were fastened together with a hard wooden board between them for protection against light firearms. Thus the name “Sandwich” armored cars. In March 1948, the Armored Vehicles Service was formed, headed by Major General Yitzhak Sadeh. The vehicles have taken part in combat along all of Israel’s fronts.

Obverse: An armored car in motion along rocky terrain; the words “ARMORED CARS” and “1948” are inscribed in Hebrew and in English along the bottom section of the medal.

Reverse: A war chariot from the Period of Israel’s Kings with the words and source in Hebrew and English “Chariots of Salvation”, “Habakkuk”; the Armored Corps emblem appears in the lower part of the medal.

Edge: State emblem with the words "STATE OF ISRAEL" inscribed in Hebrew on the right and in English on the left; serial number and metal.

Designer: Eliezer Weishoff.

Engraving: Tidhar Dagan.

Mint: Hecht Ltd., Israel.