This work is aimed to characterize, by physicochemical analytical techniques such as Optical Microscopy, X Ray Fluorescence (XRF), X Ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Energy and Wavelength Dispersive Spectrometry (EPMA-EDS e EPMA-WDS) and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), the constituent materials and the degradation compounds of ancient tin amalgam mirrors and of handmade and industrial contemporary silver mirrors. Amalgam and silver mirrors are the two most important categories of glass mirrors used to date. They developed consecutively from the end of the 14th century till now. Because of the few number of previous scientific studies about artistic mirrors, this work is focused on the characterization of glasses, of reflective layers and of protective varnish films, and the determination of rh degradation compounds for each type of considered mirror.
