Jewelry Wire Gauge

Jewelry wire gauge is a measure of the diameter or gauge of wire used in jewelry manufacture.

Wire is a single, usually cylindrical, elongated strand of drawn metal. This definition is currently correct, but was not correct when wire was first invented over 2,000 years BC. Wire was first made from gold nuggets pounded into flat sheets. The sheets were then cut into strips and the strips were first twisted and then rolled into the round shape we call wire. This early wire was used in making jewelry. This early wire, made from sheets of pounded metal, can be distinguished from modern wire by the spiral line along the wire created by the edges of the sheet.

Modern wire is manufactured by a different process. Wire is made by pulling a solid metal cylinder through a draw plate with holes of a defined size. This approach to making wire was something that was discovered in Ancient Rome. Frequently, smaller sizes of wire are made by pulling wire through successively smaller holes in the draw plate until the desired size is reached.

Today, wire is used extensively in many applications from fencing to the electronics industry to electrical distribution and finally in the making of wire wrapped jewelry. Originally, when wire was first used, its use was limited to making jewelry.