The article summarizes scientific techniques that are applied to the study of works of art and historic artifacts. Interpretation of materials and techniques, authentication, and preservation are the primary emphases of such scientific investigations. Recent examination of the Wright Flyer by a team of scientist is mentioned as one example. The bulk of the article consists of a discussion of collaboration between a chemist (Orna, College of New Rochelle, NY) and an art historian (Mathews, NYU) in the study of pigments used medieval manuscripts. Using several techniques for pigment identification, the investigators found that Byzantine painters used organic materials mixed with lead white, while Armenian pigments were made almost entirely from minerals. Byzantine and Armenian manuscripts in turn differ from those made in Europe. Changes through time in the pigments used by individual artists can also be identified. The article concludes with brief mention of other scientific techniques useful to art historians, including thermoluminescence dating, immunological studies to identify egg tempera, and digital image analysis.