planished

Planished is a term used in metalworking to describe a surface that has been smoothed and refined by planishing. Planishing is a forming operation in which a metal piece, typically a sheet or a formed contour, is hammered or rolled with a planishing hammer against a smooth, hard surface (planishing block) to even out irregularities left by previous shaping. The result is a bright, uniform surface with minimized hammer marks and improved flatness or contour fidelity. Planishing can be performed on various ductile metals, including gold, silver, copper, brass, and aluminum, usually while the metal is cold.

The process involves carefully working the surface with a rounded or flat-faced hammer and gradually moving across the area, often using a softly supported or partly curved planishing block to guide the flow of metal. Planishing helps to compress the surface grains and close up microcracks, producing a smoother finish without materially removing material. Planished surfaces may still require polishing to achieve a high-gloss mirror finish, as planishing itself tends to leave a subtle satin or brushed texture depending on technique and tools.

In practice, planished finishes are common in jewelry making, coinage, sculpture, and sheet metal fabrication, where a smooth, accurate surface is important. The adjective planished describes metal that has undergone this finish, and the noun form can refer to the planishing process itself.