collar of esses

plural collars of esses · alternative collar of Ss

1. An ornamental chain made up of interlinked or juxtaposed S's, originally worn by nobles of the House of Lancaster, and later associated by some writers with the Order of the Garter.

   During the reigns of Edward IV and Richard III the collar of esses was frowned upon, to say the least.

   1997, Doris Fletcher, “The Lancastrian Collar of Esses”, in The Age of Richard II, page 191

   2 more examples

   Anciently, the creation of an esquire, in England, was performed by the ceremony of the King placing about his neck a silver collar of SS, as an ensign of that dignity […].

   1828, William Berry, Encyclopaedia Heraldica, volume I

   Marney's pre-eminence was evident in the new reign's first meeting of the Order of the Garter, which the young king called with alacrity for 18 May – and for which occasion he had bought himself a Lancastrian collar of esses, in emulation of his hero Henry V.

   2011, Thomas Penn, Winter King, Penguin, published 2012, page 353

   Synonyms: SS collar