Fermesse

The fermesse is an encrypted symbol in love letters and stands for love and loyalty. The sign is a crossed-out capital S (similar to today's dollar sign $) and has been used since the 14th century, but did not really spread until 1550, especially in the French-speaking world. Such abbreviations were often used in the letters of the time and were familiar to anyone who could read.

literature

• Philippe Ariès and Georges Duby (eds.): History of private life . Volume 3: Philippe Ariès and Roger Chartier (eds.): From the Renaissance to the Enlightenment . S. Fischer, Frankfurt a. M. 1994, ISBN 978-3-10-033612-5 , pp. 248-249.