- Prestigious Holbrook limousine
- Whisper-quiet Phantom engine
- Transatlantic intrigue
In 1925 Rolls-Royce introduced the "New Phantom," successor to the
long-running but aging Silver Ghost. Although the chassis was an
evolution of the Ghost, the engine was new, with overhead valves
and larger displacement, 7,668 cc. The New Phantom, later to be
designated "Phantom I" after a Phantom II was introduced in 1929,
was heavier than the Silver Ghost, and performance suffered. To
restore agility for the sporting customer, Rolls-Royce designer
Ivan Evernden had coachbuilders Barker & Co. work up a light
boat-tail tourer body style, an example of which exceeded 89 mph in
the flying half-mile.
Rolls-Royce cars did not come with bodies. Customers would order a
chassis; on assembly it would be sent out to one of many
coachbuilders in Britain or abroad. In the 1920s, Rolls-Royce had a
fully functioning branch in Springfield, Massachusetts, serving
many American customers. By the mid-1920s, American Rolls-Royce
were being built with left-hand drive and other concessions to
local norms. Still, some customers preferred to order their
Rolls-Royce cars from Britain and have them bodied there or on the
Continent.
This car, chassis 12DC, is one of those. It was ordered in January
1926 by Jacob Lit of Philadelphia, a partner with his brother
Samuel in Lit Brothers, a middle-class department store. Mr. Lit
specified an enclosed-drive body by Kellner of Paris. The chassis,
with engine AD15, came off test on 26 March and was dispatched
three days later, ready for shipment to Paris. On 1 April it was on
the seas headed for Boulogne. On 26 September it was recorded as
embarked on the SS McKeesport for New York.
The car's early history in the U.S. has proved elusive, though
service records of Rolls-Royce in America note Mr. Lit as its
owner, as well as subsequent keepers Walter Snel of Butler, New
Jersey, and Charles McVeigh of Syosset, Long Island, who was
selling it in January 1952. Subsequent owners are said to be Ralph
and Margaret Burkhart of Martinsburg, Virginia, and it is believed
to have spent time in the Harrah collection. At some point, the
Kellner enclosed-drive body was removed and replaced by an
open-drive Holbrook body made in the United States.
The Holbrook Company, originally of New York City but later upstate
in Hudson, New York, was one of the many carriage
builders-turned-auto body builders in the U.S. Their work most
often appeared on the likes of Owen Magnetic, Locomobile, or
Simplex. Somehow, at some time, the Rolls' current open-drive
Limousine Sedan body was built for or transferred to 12DC.
The Holbrook body in many ways transforms the Rolls-Royce persona.
The body has a fluidity not present in traditional Rolls-Royce
lines. The medium maroon body and black fenders also lend a New
World air. The chauffeur's medium tan leather and the almost gold
mohair in the passenger cabin are perhaps the greatest deviations,
anchored by the right-hand steering and gated shift lever. The word
"unique" is frequently overused, but it certainly applies here.To
view this car and others currently consigned to this auction,
please visit the RM website at
rmsothebys.com/en/auctions/hf19.