You put your penny into the machine along with the fee - typically 50 cents - and watch
They Have Been Around For Two Centuries The first elongated coins were reportedly made by a Viennese jeweler in Austria in 1818. The first penny press was a hand-cranked jewelry mill.
They're "Made In The USA" Pressed pennies made their American debut at the Chicago World's Columbian Exposition of 1893.
There were four designs, all of which commemorated the 400th anniversary of Columbus discovering America.
The Pennies Are Squeezed By Rollers Coins are squeezed between two rollers. One of the rollers has an engraved surface. While one roller flattens and elongates the coin, the other presses the custom design into it.
Pennies Work Best Although any coin can be pressed, pennies are preferred. The darker color of the copper and zinc from which the coins are minted
allow designs to show up more clearly. In fact, older pennies are best: The best pennies to use are from prior to 1982, when the pennies were made of 95% copper.