Featured Help with a brooch identification

Good morning. Wanted to ask for help please with the brooch identification. Imitation gold, not gold-plated. Mark is hard to read but seems to be S. WSS; All I could find was Sheffield W.S.Savage & Co that could match the marking; but did they make fashion jewelry?! The "stones" - celluloid?! bakelite? Or is this something much more recent?! Thank you very much for all your wisdom on this!

 

Might it read Swiss?

 

Stones look like marcasite and carnelian or carnelian glass.

It's a quite nice looking piece. Is the front silvertone with the carnelian bordered in gold color? Or is the whole thing goldtone? Photo is hard to tell. Also noticed the pin has a bale or pendant loop. There is some work in this, would be great to ID that name.

 

If it were me I would test it, it looks like it should be silver. Silver can take on a warm cast when it tarnishes or sometimes has a gold wash. However, I can't remember ever coming across a silver and marcasite piece with a gold wash, but I could be wrong.

Have it checked.

Give it a polish with foaming silver polish using a very soft toothbrush, you may be pleasantly surprised

 

Could it say Weiss?

 

I'd think costume; the stones look glued in. The mark is a blurry mess, but it's not Weiss.

 

Thank you very much for all the suggestions. The combination of "gold" and marcasite puzzled me the most! tested for 10K gold, which of course it is not. It "cleans" with a typical silver dark grey residue - i will try testing it for silver again. The mark is very hard to photograph, and to read as it is on an angled panel and the light reflects a lot from the gold. Your suggestion about gold wash made me think that maybe the first letter is G, so the it could be G W SS, "gold wash sterling silver" ?!

"Stones" - perhaps indeed carnelian glass! i will research further!

Any thoughts on the age or origin? art deco?
many thanks again

 

From the back I would guess last 3rd of the 20th century when silver and marcasite jewelry had a resurgence.

 

My guess is you have it upside down and it simply says STERLING.

 

Good morning!
Thank you again for all the comments - much appreciated. tested it again - not silver. looks like as noted above the later part 20th century costume piece! many thanks!!!! a