Active infrared thermography applied to the investigation of art and historic artefacts

Infrared thermography (IRT) is a non-destructive technique that has recently been extensively applied to the investigation of cultural heritage. It provides information on the surface and subsurface structure of the artefacts by the analysis of the heat diffusion process within the sample. IRT has been successfully applied to the study of historic large structures and buildings most of the time by means of the so-called passive approach, where only the naturally occurring temperature changes in the sample are analysed. On the other hand, IRT has also been applied to the study of other art and historic artefact by applying the so-called active method where the thermal stimulation of the sample is required. In this article, an overview of the applications of active thermography to the investigation of art and historic artefacts will be presented and discussed.