X-ray fluorescence applications for the study and conservation of cultural heritage

X-ray nuorescence has been used for some fifty years in the study and conservation of archaeological and historical objects: yet, given the number of papers that are still published in this field, its capability of stimulating the creativity of scientists, conservators, archaeologists and art-historians is far from being exhausted. This paper aims at reviewing part of the considerable number of papers published so far with a special focus on the relationship between non-destructive and quantitative analysis or, one could say, between the instrument and the object analyzed. The criteria used by scientists to design the investigations are also considered, and examples are shown in which similar objects are approached, from the analytical point of view, in totally different ways.