The Rip Van Winkle calendar and art medal was issued in 1981 by the Franklin Mint. The 3-inch bronze medal was designed by Al Fiorentino and modeled by Dominic Angelini, a staff sculptor at the Franklin Mint.

The front of the medal depicts three scenes, including a young Rip Van Winkle walking with his dog Wolf, then an aged, newly awakened Rip Van Winkle sitting on a tree with his trusty rifle after his 20-year nap and lastly an old Rip returning to his home village where he is unrecognized after his long absence.

The reverse side of the medal depicts the calendar for the year 1981, Rip’s trusty rifle, a set of nine-pins, and a “strange figure” carrying a keg of liquor.

Rip Van Winkle (front)_The 1981 Franklin Mint Annual Calendar - Art Medal Rip Van Winkle (back)_The 1981 Franklin Mint Annual Calendar - Art Medal

Dominic Angelini (1923-2017), sculptor of the Rip Van Winkle medal, was born in Camden, New Jersey to Italian immigrant parents, with his father working as a coal stoker at a factory. Dominic proudly served during World War II after having enlisted in the Army Air Corps. He survived 65 bombing missions as a turret gunner in a B-25 bomber with the 57th Bomb Wing, 487th Squadron. After the war, Dominic worked at the New York Shipyard in Camden, before attending the Hussian School of Art on the GI Bill. He became a designer at Price Brothers Lithograph in Bridgeton designing can labels. In 1979, Dominic went to work for the Franklin Mint in Philadelphia where he designed commemorative coins and sculptures. Dominic passed away in 2017 and is buried at Saint Bridget’s Cemetery in Glassboro, New Jersey.

The Franklin Mint was founded as a private mint in 1964 by Joseph H. Segel (1931-2019) in Wawa, Pennsylvania. The Franklin Mint mass produced and sold collectible items such as coins, medals, jewelry, die-cast vehicles and aircraft, sculpture and much more.  The Franklin Mint closed its physical operations in 2003, but continue to exist as an online brand owned by Retail Ecommerce Ventures (REV).