Beaded wire
from the Antique Jewelry University
Beaded wire is a form of decorative wire that can be used as a method to decorate and obscure joints by soldering or just in simple openwork filigree.
When gold wire became known to man beaded wire was a logical next step. The smooth wires were decorated to achieve diversity. Beaded wire can be produced by running a double edged implement over a smooth wire which would have been the antique way of doing things. Presently it is produced by die striking.