The Penn State All-Sports Museum, home to the athletic history of Penn State, revealed the addition of a Penn State-themed pressed-penny machine last week.

The machine, which produces four penny designs, costs 51 cents and is unique to Penn State and the museum. As the All-Sport Museum searched for museum-branded merchandise unrivaled elsewhere, director Lew Lazarow realized a pressed-penny machine was exactly what his team was looking for to engage Penn State fans and pressed-penny fanatics alike.

“For us, a pressed-penny machine offered definite advantages: it gave our visitors — particularly families with young children — an interactive way to collect an inexpensive souvenir of their visit to the museum, to the stadium, for a game, etc.,” Lazarow told Onward State. “And older visitors often wax nostalgic, remembering all the other times they’ve made pressed pennies. Since the machine arrived last Thursday, the response has been tremendous.”

The penny choices include the Nittany Lion logo, the Penn State All-Sports Museum logo, a Beaver Stadium bird’s-eye view, and a “My First Game at Beaver Stadium” keepsake option.

One pressed penny costs 50 cents for the opportunity and the inserted penny is returned as the souvenir. In addition to its availability in the All-Sports Museum, the pressed-penny machine is transported to Curtin Road for the Beaver Stadium Block Party ahead of home football games each Saturday.

Penn State football fans were thrilled about the addition of the pressed-penny machine to the gameday experience at the pregame block party, Lazarow said, and there was an extremely long line for the personalized pennies at the Nittany Lions’ home opener against Bowling Green on Saturday.

“It was clearly an experience everyone appreciated,” Lazarow said.

The Penn State All-Sports Museum is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. every Tuesday through Saturday and from noon to 4 p.m. on Sundays. The museum is located in the southwest corner of Beaver Stadium between Gates A and B immediately off Curtin Road.