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This very special 40/50hp Silver Ghost was initially commissioned for the Delhi Durbar, on the celebration of the coronation of King George V and Queen Mary in 1911, one of the most spectacular displays of Indian pageantry that the world had ever seen. This specimen is one of eight Silver Ghosts with identical landaulets bodies provided for this special event.
Following the Durbar, its ownership passed to Krishna Raja Wodeyar IV, Maharaja of Mysore. At some early period in its post-Durbar life the unique Mulliner Pullman limousine coachwork was removed and re-bodied with this open Midnight Blue Victoria-style bodywork to suit the tropical climate, complemented by Consort Red leather interior, it was then used exclusively for parades and similar ceremonial occasions.
The dignitaries riding in the elevated rear seat are protected from the sun by a folding Victoria top. The large umbrella in the rear was to provide partial shading for the guards and retainers standing at attention in the sun; a very thoughtful gesture on part of the Maharaja.
The car returned to the United Kingdom in the early 1960s, as property of Victor Barclay, son of Jack Barclay founder of the famous sales agency for Rolls-Royce. Barclay would offer the car for sale at the first collector’s car auction of motorcars held by Sotheby’s in November 1965. The buyer on the day was James Leake, the famed collector from Oklahoma USA, who paid something of a record price for its day.
A little over a decade later, Leake returned the car to the UK for the celebration of the Queen’s Jubilee at Windsor in 1977.
James Leake would keep the car for more than 20 years passing it on to Tom Barrett of (Barrett-Jackson fame) in 1987, from Barrett it was sold to ‘Ghost’ collector Raymond Lutgert, in 1993 before passing briefly to Silver Ghost aficionado Millard Newman of Tampa, Florida. Newman sold the car to Richard Solove who is one of the most noted collectors of the model to date, The Maharaja’s car becoming the 11th in his quest for a ‘full-set’ of each year of Silver Ghost from 1907-1915.
On achieving this goal in 2007, Solove nobly sold the collection publicly to benefit cancer charities at which point the car joined the penultimate member of this impressive chain of Silver Ghost owners, the late John M O’Quinn.
In 2011, one century after its original handover, this priceless Silver Ghost was acquired by Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Doha, and is now on display at its state-of-the-art Rolls-Royce showroom, standing as a testament to the unwavering stately luxury that every Rolls-Royce motor car encapsulates.
Over the course of the last century, this 1911 Silver Ghost has been cherished and prized throughout its life. Being the subject of two thorough restorations, as well as being present among numerous pictorial references, it is featured in the Lawrence Dalton book ‘Those Elegant Rolls-Royce’ and was immortalised in the Melbourne Brindle/Phil May book Twenty Silver Ghosts where it is illustrated with the Taj Mahal as its backdrop.
There is no greater statement of this than the Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost Class win that it achieved at the 1995 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, following a refurbishment at the hands of noted specialist David Hemmings, although its condition has aged just a little since.
Its engine number 91K, a straight six with 7036cc displacement offering 48 horsepower managed by a three speed manual transmission, is actually the unit originally fitted to one of the Maharajah of Mysore’s other Silver Ghosts and must have been exchanged at some point during its service.
