Lamborghini caused considerable commotion when it first unveiled the Miura in Turin in 1965.

At that point just a rolling chassis of ingenious mid-engine design, what began as an after-hours exercise for Bob Wallace, Paolo Stanzani, and former Ferrari man, Gian Paolo Dallara, had within a year become a reality.

Showgoers were both impressed by the firm’s ambition and curious that it seemed poised to go racing.

Such was the level of intrigue in the project—a fascinatingly compact marriage of transversely-mounted V-12 engine and five-speed transaxle—that order books began to fill shortly after the show halls opened to the public.

Jaws fully hit the floor the following year in Geneva, when the clever design was paired with arguably the most beautiful bodywork to ever grace a supercar.

Low-slung, curvaceous and achingly cool, the Miura P400 became an instant icon thanks in no small part to Marcello Gandini, whose remarkable study paired delicate yet purposeful lines with headlamp surr...