LIKE a blushing bride, the Mansion House is hiding its face from the public at the moment. It is concealed from view under a veil of scaffolding and plastic sheeting.

But what colour should it be once it shows its face again?

It has changed colours several times throughout its long history.

When it was originally completed in 1732, the building was red brick with stone surrounds. From about 1750, to clean and freshen up the facade, the brickwork was painted brick red, while the stonework was painted an off-white stone colour.

From 1800 until the 1890s, the whole face of the building was then painted stone white, giving it the look of one of those London mansions in Kensington.

Then, from the 1890s onwards, as fashions changed again, the brickwork was painted red again.

The question is, what colour should it be following its latest, £2.1 million restoration?

City of York Council wants to hear what the people of York think.

The Mansion House restoration team, led by house manager Richard Pollitt, have come up with three options. In one, it would look as it did in 1750: the brickwork painted red, the stone white, and the great coat of arms of York carved on the pediment also painted white.

A second option would see the entire front of the building painted white, as it was for almost 100 years from 1800. The third would be similar to the first, with the brickwork painted red, but the coat of arms on the pediment painted in contrasting colours.

The council will be launching a two-week consultation from Monday to seen which of these three options people prefer.

"The Mansion House is one of York's famous landmarks and we thought it would be great to get residents involved in which of the historic designs they prefer," said the city council's deputy leader, Cllr Keith Aspden.

All three colour schemes are based on historical evidence, Mr Pollitt says: on analysis of the 47 layers of paint which cover the house's front.

Mr Pollitt's team have produced the three images on this page, to let you see what they would look like.

A special Mansion House gazebo will be set up in St Helen's Square on Friday July 29 and Wednesday August 3, where you can find out more - or you can also visit www.mansionhouseyork.com Essentially it comes down to this: should the home of York's Lord Mayor be painted red or white?

Over to you...

  • The Mansion House consultation begins on Monday. To have your say on what colour the house should be painted, visit www.york.gov.uk/consultations, email mansionhouse@york.gov.uk, tweet @mansionHoYork, comment on Facebook at Facebook.com/Mansion-House, or call 01904 552036