Rolls-Royce has just unveiled Serenity, an extended wheelbase Phantom and the latest one-off commission demonstrating just what their Bespoke team is capable off – and it turns out, quite a lot.
For the design, the team looked to Japan, taking cues from Japanese Royal robe motifs which they set against contemporary interpretations of European furniture.
The Phantom’s cabin features China-sourced hand-woven silk covered with hand-painted crimson blossoms. Add to that some rare smoked cherrywood, mother of pearl, bamboo cross-banding and Arctic White leather, and you get a glimpse of the opulence involved.
“Some of the most opulent silk motifs come to us from the Orient, where imperial families’ and rich merchants’ robes were made from the finest silk materials,” commented Michelle Lusby, one of the Textile Arts specialists who worked on the motif.
There’s quite a story behind the silk itself. Sourced in Suzhou, China, the silk was hand-dyed by local craftspeople before being whisked over to be spun at one of Britain’s oldest mills and then transported to London where every petal of the crimson blossom was painstakingly hand-painted using centuries-old techniques.
The resulting sections and swatches that form the centrepiece of Serenity have taken up to 600 hours of work per panel. For a marque that’s proud of its ability to meet almost any demand from its customers, it’s expected that all of the trim variations demonstrated in Serenity will become available, along with a suitably plush price tag. If you thought the inside of a Rolls-Royce Phantom was already a soothing place, just imagine how calm you’d be cocooned within Serenity’s comfy cabin.