Downing Street

[Hopkirk]

Are No. 10 and No. 11 built with black bricks, or painted black?

[emmie]

Hundreds of years of heavy pollution had stained the bricks black. “To keep the familiar appearance, the newly cleaned yellow bricks were painted black to match their previous colour,” according to the 10 Downing Street government website. Number 10’s famous black front door has also been updated in the last two decades.

[Buenchico]

Quote (relating to rebuilding work c.1960):
"When builders examined the exterior façade, they discovered that the black colour visible even in photographs from the mid-19th century was misleading; the bricks were actually yellow. The black appearance was the product of two centuries of pollution. To preserve the 'traditional' look of recent times, the newly cleaned yellow bricks were painted black to resemble their well-known appearance. The thin tuckpointing mortar between the bricks is not painted, and so contrasts with the bricks".

Source:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/10_Downing_Street

[douglas9401]

Filth in Downing Street to be preserved for the sake of tradition.

[douglas9401]

A spokesman added "Black bricks matter".

[Hopkirk]

Thanks to the three of you.

[jno]

douglas is not wrong. The Government must be the only institution in Britain trying to make its property looking more polluted rather than less.

[vulcan42]

I have often wondered how many millions are wasted on unnecessary tradition. Painting a building black because it gradually became that colour through pollution certainly seems to fall into the unnecessary tradition category.

[Togo]

No 10 Downing St probably late 1700s.

https://thumbsnap.com/i/d6mSxbVU.jpg

[poorclare]

does it matter the colour ? it's what goes on BEHIND the
black bricks and black door.

[Peter Pedant]

// Filth in Downing Street to be preserved for the sake of tradition.//

we should be more worried about the filth living inside

[bobbinwales]

I think that was douglases point Peter