Involute cylindrical gears are a key component of various machines and are widely used in all areas of the national economy. To achieve uniformity in involute measurements， gear involute artifacts are often used as entity standards for the traceability， transfer， and comparison of involute profile deviations. This paper reviews the progress in research on high-precision gear involute artifacts with single and multi-base circular parameters， gear artifacts integrating other geometrical parameters， non-involute artifacts， and high-precision involute measuring instruments in various countries. It also suggests uses of roll path length of gear involute artifacts and provides an outlook on the development of high-precision gear involute artifacts.