Wired

WIRE HAS BEEN AROUND for centuries, and is still a hugely popular medium that can be utilised for almost everything, from using it in jewellery to keeping pictures hung on walls and to provide support for bridges. Wire was one of the primary products used in jewellery and for decorative purposes, and that remains the same in modern times also.

It is unclear where or when wire was first created, and it can be linked back to many cultures and civilisations that were in existence from around 3000 BC. It is understood that copper wire was made in Mesopotamia (now the region occupied by modern Iraq) between 5000 and 6000 years ago by the Sumerians and Chaldeans, both for decorative and useful purposes. Ancient Egyptians were making gold wire for their every day lives and as the basis for their jewellery from around 2900 BC. They used a technique called ‘strip drawing’, where thin strips of metal were cut by pulling a larger sheet of metal through perforations in stone beads, which caused the thin strips of metal to curl into long, thin tubes. The wire made during this time is characterised by a seam line that spirals around the tube,