Rolls-Royce’s Phantom II was a culmination of development going back to 1906, when the first 40/50 HP model, the immortal Silver Ghost, was born.

The Phantom II was the final iteration of the 40/50 HP line, with the six-cylinder engine displacing 7.6 liters and now mounted upon a new, notably lower chassis of 150 inches in length.

This new low-slung configuration allowed coachbuilders to produce more flowing designs, and this in turn prompted an epoch of extraordinary cars carrying the famous Spirit of Ecstasy mascot.

All Phantom IIs were built with coachwork and tailoring to the specific requirements of their first owner, and this stellar 1930 Park Ward Sports Saloon presented here is an excellent example of the lengths to which Rolls-Royce customers were able to customize their vehicles.

One of very few produced in this style, chassis 117GN was originally delivered on 10 December 1930 to the industrialist Albert Younglove Gowen in Concord, Massachusetts.

Gowen is indisputably on...