We present atomistic simulations of < 110 > oriented gold nanowires under tensile deformation. We find that < 110 > gold nanowires tend to form elongated, stable nanobridges upon necking, which is in agreement with previous experimental observations. In addition, the simulations reveal that the formation of a high strength multishell lattice structure during the plastic deformation of the < 110 > wires may account for the stability of the elongated nanobridges observed experimentally. (c) 2005 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.