This resplendent example of the early, Manchester-built Rolls-Royce 40/50 HP Silver Ghost was sold new in early 1908 to Sir John Stewart-Clarke of Dundas Castle, South Queensferry, Scotland, as the first of four Silver Ghosts that would be supplied to the Lord Dundas and his family, and registered “SX48” as it remains today. Remarkably the original John Croall invoices, for sale and subsequent repairs, remain with the car. A long-wheelbase model and the 12th of the second “700” series of 40/50 HP chassis, it was bodied by the revered London coachbuilders Barker as a handsome and imposing open-drive landaulette, described as “D-fronted”.

Afterwards, it remained in service with the family until 1913, when it was retired from regular use and converted into a shooting brake, retaining the original wood lower body framing, front seat, and firewall, as well as the detachable-rim wheels and Barker wings. Reportedly a family member commented in the 1980s that it was used every year for attending shooting events in the Highlands.

The Dundas family eventually sold the Silver Ghost to Scottish railway magnate John Cuthill Sword, one of the United Kingdom’s earliest and most prominent vintage automobile collectors, whose name still stands as a mark of quality on many of the finest Edwardian cars. Following Mr Sword’s passing, in 1962 the Rolls-Royce was sold at a now-landmark auction and acquired by the famed, vast Harrah’s Automobile Collection of Nevada.

In 1979 the Silver Ghost was deaccessioned and sold by Harrah’s to the American Rolls-Royce collector and restorer, Tom Batchelor, who restored it with a contemporary tourer body. Seven years later the car was sold anew, this time to the prolific British enthusiast Terry Cohn, who had it restored by John Cockayne, David Hemmings, and Brian Frost, after which it won numerous awards including its class at the 1989 Rolls-Royce Enthusiasts Club Annual Rally and Concours. Mr Cockayne aptly described the result as, mechanically, “the best of the early Silver Ghosts”.

Despite the car’s concours prizes, Mr Cohn eventually decided to restore it to its original landaulette configuration, and charged Mr Hemmings with visiting the Dundas estate. Investigations led to the family of a former employee, who, as it turned out, retained a large collection of coachwork components, including ironwork, a pair of doors, Barker kick plates, and Rushmore headlights, all the same as the Silver Ghost’s original specification and likely to have been removed when the car was converted to a shooting brake. Using these components, mated with the remainder of the original body structure saved during the conversion, the landaulette was faithfully and accurately recreated, using, it can safely be said, every original piece that could be found! The result matches the car’s delivery photograph in John Fasal’s The Edwardian Rolls-Royce quite neatly.

The Silver Ghost was acquired by the present family collection in 2000. Today it remains in very attractive condition, with its bodywork richly detailed and lavishly trimmed in green cord with matching brocade trim, and such beautiful details as folding occasional seats and table, a small barware set, and window blinds. It is widely considered to be one of the most mechanically correct and authentic surviving early 40/50 HP models, down to its original undershields and accompanying single-jet carburettor, as well as one of the very earliest extant Silver Ghosts that can be said to substantially retain original coachwork. Accompanying is a fascinating history file, as well as the balance of the shooting brake body ‘conversion’ not used in the restoration of the original Barker coachwork.

The opportunity to acquire such a proven, storied and significant example of this most desirable Edwardian automobile is not to be missed.