Abstract

An improved award medal capable of being configured to include bright attractive colors and any number of unique and/or intricate designs. The award medal of the present invention is structured to be formed of a relatively soft material which includes a weight element so as to substantially duplicate the weight of a conventional metallic award medal. The improved award medal includes a main body preferably formed to have a generally flat, plate-like configuration and appearance, with a first outer surface, a second outer surface, and a surrounding peripheral sidewall. The main body will be formed of a substantially soft, resilient, rubber material and ideally, a rubberized polyvinyl chloride material. In order to provide structural integrity to the main body, a substantially heavy weight assembly is disposed within the improved award medal. Additionally, a variety of decorative indicia are positioned on at least one of the outer surfaces of the main body. The decorative indicia are disposed and configured on the outer surface so as to provide a three dimensional texture and appearance to the improved award medal. The present invention additionally includes a method for manufacturing such an improved award medal.