Hammered Finish
ham·mered fin·ish | ˈha-mərd fi-nish
noun
A jewelry finish in which the piece is hammered to create many tiny planes, before polishing the result
In a hammer-finished piece of jewelry, the metal is hammered to create a number of small planes and geometric shapes, and then polished to completion. There are a number of types of hammers that can be used to create unique planes in such a piece. Before hammering the piece, the jeweler will bring the metal to a high polish to ensure the item is as even as possible around the edges. These hammers are precision instruments and highly polished to ensure the shapes created are exactly as desired. The amount of polishing after the hammer finish is applied will determine how pronounced the hammered effect is.