From Latin for metal to a piece of metal so fine it became jewelry — the medallion is literally an oversized medal.
A large medal or coin-shaped ornament, or a circular or oval decorative motif in architecture and cooking.
From French médaillon, augmentative of médaille meaning medal, from Italian medaglia, from Vulgar Latin *medallia, from Latin metallum meaning metal Key roots: metallum (Latin: "metal, mine").
The medallion man — a stereotype of 1970s fashion featuring an unbuttoned shirt and gold medallion on a hairy chest — became such a cultural touchstone that the medallion itself became permanently associated with male vanity and questionable taste, despite its noble origins in military decoration.