This report sets out some basic properties of matter and fundamental physical properties which may be of interest to conservators. The emphasis is not on the chemical physics itself but on how the phenomena might be better utilized in the treatments of artistic and historic objects. Phenomena reviewed are: the colloidal state, electrophoresis, electroosmosis, streaming and sedimentation potential, ion-exchange, factors of flow (viscosity, compressibility, hysteresis, shear, plasticity, thixotropy, strain, tensile strength), rheology.