GOLD-THREAD, or SPUN-GOLD, is flattened gold, wrapped or laid over a thread of silk, by twisting it with wheel and iron bobbins.
To dispose the wire to be spun on silk, they pass it between two rollers of a little mill: these rollers are of nicely polished steel, and about three inches in diameter. They are set very close to each other, and turned by means of a handle fastened to one of them, which gives motion to the other. The gold wire in passing between the two is rendered quite flat, but without losing any thing of its gilding; and is rendered so exceedingly thin and flexible, that it is easily spun on silk-thread, by means of a hand-wheel, and so wound on a spool or bobbin. See WIRE-DRAWING.