A rainbow of colors

After anayzing all possible data, we have come to the conclusion about which colors we should paint the metal in our roof. According to the sources the roof has been always green to emulate copper (Chris Freeberg, living in Bellevue 1952 - 1958) and the tower for sure was always green (Lars Edler, living in Bellevue 1958 - 1974, he painted the tower himself!) although the roof during that time period was in clay.
When looking at the postcards, it is evident that there were at least two different shades of color. One darker and one lighter.

A piece of old metal with the "original" dark green

We only know that the roof was "redone" at the end of the 70s. This doesn't mean that all the metal was changed. Infact, we have come to the conclusion that just the dormer windows and the water boards have got a nice layer of extra new amazing innovative coated metal during that time frame (pity, they left the old metal underneath!).
Possibly, in that occasion they had also repainted the majority of the metal. When looking at it, we can see that the bottom layer is often a dark green color.
Our conclusion is therefore that dark green were many details as the tower (confirmed also by our neighbour).
We can't know when the roof was redone before 1976. But the metal was cut in small pieces as it was normal before 1960, when the metal was available just in the 60x120 size. So, what we had must be at least from 1940-1950.
I believe that most likely that metal was there from the very start and that, maintained properly, it had lasted very long.
Unfortunately, such maintainance has not bee carried on successfully for at least the past 15 years, with the result that rust has attacked the metal making it prone to get holes and it is very few pieces that we could save of it.

Still looking at the postcards, and trying to scrape off color from the metal details like the cornice, it looks that the green there was of a lighter color. Closer to the color that it is there today (and that today is "pestering" also other details which should be darker, instead).
We have therefore decided that the cornice, the gutters, the chimneys foot and the angle chute should be of this lighter color.
Of course, it is a guess, it is very hard to be sure, but we have good data to believe that we are at least getting closer to the original.

During the work that has been taken place on our roof, some boards have been removed since rotten. This includes some piece of painted beam that is "under" the roof in several points.
Since we had to go and buy paint for the roof, we went and buy also the color for the beams.
But, when taking up the piece of beam that was lying in the trash pile, I have noticed something very interesting.
Under the white coat there was another layer of color. Pale yellow.

A rotten beam showing the color layers

Once at the paint shop we have confirmed that the layer is the original color and once home, I had the opportunity to study pieces of the facade that point out that everything was pale yellow.
And if everything was pale yellow, the roof was still green... then the windows must have been english red. At least for 2 years! Why did they change to light grey/white? That is something I keep not understanding.
But, this also raises the question (again!) of which color we must choose for the windows and to me, it seems obvious that when the facade will be repainted, we will choose that pale yellow above.

Anyway, with all the information at hands, we went to the paint shop for linseed paint. Ottossons offers a great selection of linseed paint which is what we will use to pain metal, windows and also the boards.
The smell at the shop was fantastic (possibly also because they were selling very fancy soaps) and it was very interesting to be able to shop the paint we needed bringing the samples we had.

Our purchases at Ottossons

Now, we have just to start the paint. But still, I personally haven't decided that the windows should be light grey and I am getting closer to paint them. Mattias... please, make up your mind! That is, listen to me ;-)