"Chemistry and physics are the basis in determining the most appropriate restoration processes for painting, sculptures, textiles...", according to Xperimania.net. It's not time that changes an artwork; it's a chemical change. The physical elements of the work are removed, covered or changed. The solution for removing patina, oxidation or carbon from smoke, for example, involves understanding the chemistry of the task. Up to 140 different chemicals are used in art restoration. These chemicals are used in critical ratios and combinations, which can mean the difference between restoring and ruining.
Physics, as with chemistry, is relied upon for art restoration and, as with chemistry, is math-intensive. Physics concerns itself more with the physical formation of an artwork than the chemical elements of it, though the two are interrelated. For example, a task for a physicist and chemist may be to analyze layers and cracks and how the two correspond. Once data is gathered, the physicist uses a variety of math in his analysis of data. While many branches of math come into play from basic calculations to algebra, calculus is also a commonly used tool.
For decades, radio carbon dating has been used to determine the age of extremely old objects, such as fossils. For ancient artwork -- such as cave paintings -- this method doesn't work well, because of the lack of organic material required. A new method, accelerator mass spectrometry, can determine the age of an ancient artwork with an infinitesimal amount of carbon: .05 milligrams. Much of what a accelerator mass spectrometer does is count and measure and analyze radionuclides -- atoms undergoing radioactive decay. In the final phase of analysis, a computer program uses energy loss data from atoms and electrons to deduce the nuclear charge and, subsequently, to calculate the age of the atomic material.
Tessellation is a concept sometimes referred to as tiling. In a mathematics context, it is the concept of placing like shapes over a single plane so they completely cover the plane, but never overlap. This mathematical concept is used to divide paintings into grids. Once divided, a painting can be analyzed and data organized, based on grid coordinates. This concept is also used in archeologists' digs, which often produce ancient artworks.