My weekend reading-dollarsign origin?

So, we are having morning coffee and the subject came up - 'What is the history of the dollar'. My passion is origins. Origins of words, of customs or of where did mom get that recipe. So, off I go to the internet to research.

Here are my results from the website - http://projects.exeter.ac.uk/RDavies/arian/dollar.html

The United States Abbreviation Theory

One of the most popular theories is that the dollar sign is derived from the initials of the United States. If you superimpose a capital "U" on a capital "S" then drop the lower part of the "U", what you end up with is a version of the dollar symbol with two strokes. This theory was endorsed by the American libertarian philosopher and staunch defender of capitalism, Ayn Rand, in her novel Atlas Shrugged. Chapter 10 is entitled the Sign of the Dollar. Rand claimed the dollar sign was the symbol not only of the currency, but also the nation, a free economy, and a free mind.



So much for a Sunday morning trivia discussion, eh?