Featured Marcasite initial brooch

This just had to come home with me yesterday ... It was sparkly, under-priced (IMO), one of my initials, and most of the stones are bead set and not just glued in (some may have been replaced).

It measures about 1½ (3.8 cm) across, has neither hallmark nor maker mark, looks to be the original clasp and hinge - which would date it to first half of the 20th century, right? Style-wise, I would think it was from the earlier portion of that window ... unless this is a reproduction piece.

Can any of the jewelry-folk estimate from the photos when this was made?

There are 8 little metal nubbins around the circumference of this pin - each with a hole sideways through them. Do you think something was threaded through these to 'frame' the brooch?

Other initial brooches that I've had were obviously a jeweled 'blank' where the matching letters were attached in the center of the piece in order to personalize it ... This piece actually looks as if the "S" was originally part of the pin - not soldered in. Is that possible?

Thanks for looking

 

NICE pics Quirky !!!!!
Nice brooch too !!!
Could the nubs have held a threaded strand of seed pearls....or some such addition...?

Or...maybe it was inside a larger frame....

 

Thanks komo!
It's possible ... seed pearls on wire were my first thought as I've seen this on cameos ... but couldn't find any examples of this done on marcasite brooches.
example with cameo:

 

... couldn't find any ... until I wrote that I couldn't find any

 

me either....but marcasite brooches and pearls go together like pie & ice cream !

Srill, it is small enough to be held inside a larger work...???

 

I'm likin that !!!!

 

Well that's just a Quirky coincedence !!!

 

I love it. It is ca 1890-1910.
It is pretty as it is, but I would restore the seed pearl surround.