Champlevé is an enamelling technique in the decorative arts, or an object made by that process, in which troughs or cells are carved into the surface of a metal object, and filled with vitreous enamel. The piece is then fired until the enamel melts, and when cooled the surface of the object is polished. The uncarved portions of the original surface remain visible as a frame for the enamel designs; typically they are gilded.