Ichthys

[5] The ichthys symbol is also a reference to "the Holy Eucharist, with which the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes had such intimate connection both in point of time and significance.

[10] ἸΧΘΥΣ (IKhThUS), or also ἸΧΘΥϹ with a lunate sigma, is an acronym or acrostic[11] for "Ἰησοῦς Χρῑστός Θεοῦ Υἱός Σωτήρ", Iēsoûs Khrīstós, Theoû Huiós, Sōtḗr; contemporary Koine, which translates into English as 'Jesus Christ, God's Son, Savior'.

Augustine quotes an ancient text from the Sibylline oracles[13] whose verses are an acrostic of the generating sentence.

[14] A fourth century adaptation of ichthys superimposes the Greek letters ἸΧΘΥϹ on top of each other to render a shape akin to an eight-spoked wheel.

Christ tells Peter to go to the water and cast a line, saying that a coin sufficient for both of them will be found in the fish's mouth.

Some sources indicate that the earliest literary references came from the recommendation of Clement of Alexandria to his readers (Paedagogus, III, xi) to engrave their seals with the dove or fish.

However, it can be inferred from Roman monumental sources such as the Cappella Greca and the Sacrament Chapels of the catacomb of St. Callistus that the fish symbol was known to Christians much earlier.

[27] The idea that the Ichthys was used as a secret symbol is based on an argument from silence brought forward by Robert Mowat.

[2] Both the Licinia Amia Epitaph and the Abercius inscription show the Ichthys without mention of Jesus Christ, while featuring clear attestations to Christian beliefs and themes.