The story
From death + penny. Noun sense 3 (“memorial plaque”) refers to its superficial resemblance to the one-penny coin (which was much smaller) in circulation in the United Kingdom at the time.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.
death penny
death pen·nyToday it means: A coin placed on the eyelid of a deceased person to keep the eye closed. Full definition →