The "Cool S", also known as the "Stüssy S", "Super S", "Superman S", "Pointy S", "Slayer S", "Graffiti S", "The S Factor", "The Universal S", "The Middle School S" and many other names, is a graffiti sign in popular culture that is typically doodled on children's notebooks or graffitied on walls. The exact origin of the "Cool S" is unknown, but it may have originated from geometry textbooks and has appeared around the early 1970s as a part of graffiti culture. Contrary to popular belief, the symbol has no ties to either the U.S. clothing brand Stüssy or to the character Superman.
Shape
The "Cool S" consists of 14 line segments, forming a stylized, pointed S-shape. It has also been compared to the infinity symbol. The "tails" of the S appear to link underneath so that it loops around on itself in the same way as the infinity symbol does. The "Cool S" has no reflection symmetry, but has 2-fold rotational symmetry. As illustrated, a common way to draw the shape begins with two sets of three parallel, vertical lines, one above the other.
History
Origin
The origin of the "Cool S" is unclear. A similar-looking symbol appears in the 1890 book Mechanical Graphics. "Double 'S' markings" also appear in the 1982 painting Portrait of the Artist as a Young Derelict by Jean-Michel Basquiat. The name "Superman S" comes from a belief that it was a symbol for Superman, whose costume features a stylized "S" in a diamond shape, but that shape is quite different. Although frequently referred to as the "Stüssy S", Emmy Coats has stated that it was never a symbol of the Californian surf company. David Wångstedt, better known online as LEMMiNO, studied the topic for 5 years and attempted to find the origin of the S, but he concluded that the 1890 book Mechanical Graphics which was written by professor Frederick Newton Willson could most likely be the origin. Frederick taught geometry at Princeton University in New Jersey, where he could have shown students how to draw the S.
Spread
Paul Cobley, Professor in Language and Media at Middlesex University in London, England, provided an explanation for the prevalence of the "Cool S": "That is, it's fun to draw."
