The entire car aristocracy appears in gremio, headed by a pure Rolls-Royce (owned by president Oskar Kon). This king of cars and the car of kings aroused general admiration.
The first time I read about the Rolls-Royce owned by Oskar Kon, the director of the Widzewska Manufaktura —one of the largest pre-war factories in Łódź—was over a year ago in a book by Bolesław Lesman titled Recipe for Millions. The biography of one of the wealthiest citizens of the Second Polish Republic contained the brief information, such as this: “The Rolls-Royce company notified that the ordered car would arrive in Gdańsk in mid-December. About a year and a half earlier, Oskar bought himself a Packard, but Maria dreamed of an open Rolls-Royce. It would be the first such car in Poland. So he gave in to her whim,” intrigued me. I asked many enthusiasts and historians if anyone knew about, or had even seen, this mysterious Rolls-Royce from Łódź. I always heard that yes, people had heard about such a car, but it always remained in the realm of legend. Driven by curiosity, I began the search for this phantom car from Łódź, which took me nearly twelve months. I received immense help from Steve Hubbard, a specialist in the history of the Rolls-Royce brand, a member of the Rolls-Royce Enthusiasts’ Club, and an archivist of the Silver Ghost Register, and author of ‘The Vintage Silver Ghost’.
Oskar Kon (source: NAC)
Rolls-Royce in a Haystack
On the four hundred and sixty-three pages of Recipe for Millions, Lesman mentions the Rolls-Royce four times, but these sparse details do not answer the question of what Oskar Kon’s limousine looked like. Lesman’s placement of the information about the mysterious Rolls-Royce in the context of the storyline turned out to be a clue. This allowed us to establish that the sought-after car must have been built in the 1920s. Moreover, the quote that begins this article comes from Ilustrowana Republika newspaper from May 1927, and it directly indicates that Kon was driving around Łódź in a Rolls-Royce as early as the first half of the 1920s. These time frames initially identified the car as a Silver Ghost. Lesman emphasized that the car was of an open type, as this was the millionaire’s wife’s desire. Initially, I took this as a clue… but as it turned out later, it led to a dead end. But to discover this, I had to stumble upon a breakthrough in this entire story. This breakthrough came in the form of a letter, sent by a representative of Rolls-Royce Ltd. in Derby to Oskar Kon himself, dated 1934. This letter was the key to many mysteries, as it contained information about the model of the car, which turned out to be a Rolls-Royce 40/50hp with chassis number 36-ZG and engine number P. 427. It proudly drove around Łódź with the registration plate ŁD 326.
Letter from the representative of Rolls-Royce to Oskar Kon
Show Me Your Car, and I’ll Tell You Who You Are
With the crucial information—namely the chassis number—in hand, Steve Hubbard and I opened the Rolls-Royce archives to find the most important document—the order form. We were lucky, as the order from late 1922 (the car was delivered to Łódź in early 1923) had been preserved in the factory’s records. Analyzing this document allowed us to reconstruct, step by step, the appearance of the first Rolls-Royce in Łódź. Unfortunately, despite many efforts, we could not find any photograph of the car. Therefore, based on our findings, the excellent designer and graphic artist Bartosz Janiszewski created visualizations of 36-ZG. The order not only answered many questions about the Rolls-Royce itself but also told us much about Kon, his tastes, preferences, and character.
Order of Rolls – Royce 36-ZG (source: Rolls-Royce Enthusiasts’ Club / Silver Ghost Register)
Choice of Kings
The bodywork for the Rolls-Royce with chassis number 36-ZG was built by the well-known and respected English coachbuilder Hooper & Co. Here arises a surprise and some inconsistency. Lesman described Oskar Kon’s Rolls-Royce as an open-type car. However, according to the order, it was a car with an Enclosed Drive Limousine body, which is a fully enclosed type. It is unlikely that Kon received a car with a different body than specified in the order. This is because the coachbuilder chosen by Kon was one of the best of its time. Hooper & Co. started as Adams & Hooper in Haymarket, London, in 1807. The founders were George Adams and George Hooper. In 1896, the company changed its name to Hooper & Co. Ltd. and operated under this name until 1959. Since 1830, when King William IV ascended the British throne, the company supplied carriages and cars to successive monarchs for 130 uninterrupted years. The British company was renowned for its exceptional quality and for meeting the most demanding projects. Orders came not only from crowned heads in the UK but also from the Kings of Spain, Norway, and Portugal. Hooper bodies were most often built on Daimler and Rolls-Royce chassis. The finished bodies were displayed in an impressive two-story showroom in London at 54 St James’ Street, near the prestigious Piccadilly. The 1930s saw a tremendous growth in the company, resulting in the opening of a new Hooper factory in Acton, London, in 1933, operating alongside the existing workshop. This proves that Kon chose one of the best manufacturers of the time, specializing in Rolls-Royce work and boasting royal guarantees of quality. The luxury also came at a royal price. The body alone for 36-ZG, made by Hooper, cost 950 pounds. An additional 50 pounds was added for the so-called long-type chassis. The complete chassis cost 1850 pounds for the basic version, with another 50 pounds added for its longer version. The total price of 36-ZG should also include a very long list of expensive extras, which would put the entire car’s valuation at around 3000 pounds.
Hooper & Co. print advertisement, 1932 (source: Classic Car Catalog)
Gray Eminence
Kon chose very subdued colors for the body of his Rolls-Royce. The entire body was painted in steel gray using Manders paint. The roof of the limousine was black, with thin black lines running along the side of the car. Interestingly, Kon opted for a polished aluminum bonnet. This feature was a trend initiated by the Maharajas in India. When it was discovered that the hot sun, combined with the heat generated by Rolls-Royce engines, melted the paint from the front bonnet, it was decided that cars delivered to India would have polished engine covers. Following this practical solution, the trend was set, and the millionaire from Łódź followed suit. The order included such touches as the Spirit of Ecstasy mascot on the radiator cap. The spare wheel was covered by a Gertrite cover, which protected the tyre from sun rays and weather conditions, which very quickly damaged the rubber of the time.
Visualization of the Rolls-Royce 36-ZG (illustrated by Bartosz Janiszewski)
Registered Baggage
The list of extras was long and impressive. Just like today, one of them was luxury luggage that could be custom-made for the ordered car. This was also the case with 36-ZG. The King of Widzew ordered a very large four-drawer travel trunk made by the Finnigans manufactory. The British workshop, founded by Brian Finnigan in 1830, offered a wide range of luxury items made to order but was best known for creating the highest quality trunks and luggage. To safely transport such a trunk, whether in 36-ZG or other Rolls-Royces, they were equipped with a folding frame mounted at the rear of the car known as a luggage rack. Such a seemingly mundane thing as a trunk led to a design change in Rolls-Royces in 1920. Henry Royce noticed that a chauffeur, who had to refuel the car and access the centrally located rear fuel filler, had to remove all the luggage from the rack —since the fuel tank was a part of the chassis and located at the back of the car. Royce decided that he couldn’t allow such inconvenience for his customers who bought the world’s best cars. He instructed his engineers to move the fuel filler to the side of the tank so that refueling would be possible even with luggage loaded. And Kon certainly traveled. This is evidenced by financial reports from the Widzewska Manufaktura, detailing expenses for his journeys. Furthermore, Lesman wrote in Recipe for Millions that during one such trip abroad, Kon took his Rolls-Royce with him on a rail platform. However, the chauffeur never had the chance to drive it, as the car was never unloaded…
Visualization of the case ordered with the RR 36-ZG (illustrated by Bartosz Janiszewski)
Moroccan Green and a Cabinet
In contrast to the modest exterior appearance, the interior of 36-ZG was truly luxurious. The passenger seats were covered in dark green Moroccan leather, referenced as W No. 506 in the Hooper catalog. Kon certainly must have received a catalog with fabric samples to choose a pattern to his liking. The door panels, carpet underfoot, and headliner were colour matching with the seats. Such an interior could not be without wooden finishers. In front of the passengers was a cabinet made by Hooper.
Interior of the 36-ZG (illustrated by Bartosz Janiszewski)
The cabinet’s fittings were provided by the previously mentioned Finnigans manufactory. There were items like a luxury glass decanter with glasses, a makeup set for the lady, and a shaving set for the gentleman. This supplier also provided glass-cut vases for flowers, mounted on the door pillars. There was also an electric cigar lighter and a remote communication system with the chauffeur. The chauffeur, listening carefully to driving instructions, had to settle for seats covered in plain black leather.
Interior of the 36-ZG (illustrated by Bartosz Janiszewski)
Broker
The process of purchasing and bringing the Rolls-Royce 36-ZG to Łódź was mediated by Konrad Szymanowski, whose name appears on the order. Szymanowski was a businessman and Polish consul in Manchester. His company acted as an intermediary in importing machines for the textile industry from Great Britain to Poland. The company’s office was located in Manchester at F. Brazennose St., the headquarters of the company Konrad Szymanowski i Spółka, existing since 1923, was located in Łódź at Andrzeja 51 St. The company mainly represented domestic and foreign producers of machines, technical products and raw materials. Szymanowski permanently lived in England at Hill Top Cottage, Hale Rd., Hale in Chester County. He died at the age of 60 in Great Britain, on April 19, 1937. The cause of death was stomach cancer combined with pneumonia. The company’s heir was Konrad’s 20-year-old son – Hilary Władysław Szymanowski, who also lived in Great Britain. From then on, the company operated under the name Konrad Szymanowski Spadkobiercy i Spółka.
Press advertising (source: Kurjer Wieczorny. 1923, nr 112)
What happened to 36-ZG?
The Rolls-Royce 36-ZG was no ordinary car. It was a rolling monument of wealth finished with the most expensive accessories tailor-made for a man who loved money. Kon aroused admiration in some, fear in others, and triggered feelings of revulsion and hatred. His fortune, which was one of the largest in pre-war Łódź, was marked by the blood and sweat of many workers, but also by great cunning in life, supported by business intelligence that allowed him to find his way in the capitalist reality. Workers’ opinion was probably not on Oskar Kon’s mind when he lit another cigar in the green interior of the Rolls-Royce. I have made every effort to determine whether 36-ZG has survived in any form to this day. However, everything indicates that the chances of this happening are slim, and there could be many scenarios of what happened to it. By 1935, the limousine was certainly still in Kon’s possession, but I will write about it in the next part of the secrets of the first Rolls-Royce from Łódź.
Illustrated by Bartosz Janiszewski
Author: Slawomir Poros Jr.
Co-author: Steve Hubbard
Illustrations: Bartosz Janiszewski
