The front section of the hood of any Rolls-Royce car has always been adorned by a small piece of metal that looks likes a lady dancing to the wing. Nonetheless, this emblem – called the Spirit of Ecstasy -- is more than just a piece of metal since it's the very symbol representing Rolls-Royce as a carmaker and a brand. It has been doing so for 110 years and Rolls-Royce Motor Cars is celebrating this milestone.
From The Whisper To The Spirit Of Ecstasy
Interestingly, the first Rolls-Royce didn't have the Spirit of Ecstasy. In the 1900s, Lord Montagu of Beaulieu commissioned sculptor and illustrator Charles Sykes to create a personal mascot for his own 1909 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost. Modeled after Eleanor Velasco Thornton, Sykes sculpted "The Whisper," a woman in fluttering robes with one forefinger pressed against her lips.
As part of efforts to prevent customers from fixing inappropriate mascots on the Rolls-Royce, Claude Johnson, (then managing director of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars) was asked to commission a dignified yet graceful mascot. He tapped Sykes for this job, and the sculptor created a new version of The Whisper. Dubbed as the Spirit of Ecstasy, this mascot looks like a flying goddess with fluttering draperies.
Celebrating 110 Years Of Everything Rolls-Royce
Rolls-Royce registered the design as its intellectual property February 6, 1911. Since then she has graced the bonnet of every Rolls-Royce, unaltered through 110 years to become one of the most famous symbols of luxury. As the carmaker described the emblem, she encapsulates everything its customers seek in their Rolls-Royce.
Torsten Müller-Ötvös, Chief Executive Officer at Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, remarked that the Spirit of Ecstasy fosters pride and esprit de corps, thereby uniting and empowering the Rolls-Royce family around the world. Thus, the carmaker strives to build cars worthy of bearing her, which is why Rolls-Royce itself is a symbol of complete opulence.
Graceful Bonnet Entrance Through The Rise
While first Spirit of Ecstasy figurines are 7" (18 cm) tall, the current ones are half the height at 3.75" (9.5 cm). On the latest Rolls-Royce vehicles, the Spirit of Ecstasy is hidden under the bonnet until the engine is started. By then, she gracefully enters the scene to her usual place via a mechanism known as 'the rise'.
Source: Rolls-Royce Motor Cars