Come the early 1950s, Alfa Romeo sought to expand its model range yet the assembly line at its Portello facility had limited room to grow.

That led the marque to canvas the availability of external coachbuilders.

Of the three that presented their concept, Bertone won the contract.

Little wonder, given Franco Scaglione had designed a beautiful, aerodynamic, compact-yet-sporting car that would be christened the Giulietta Sprint.

The model proved an instant hit upon its world unveiling at the 1954 Turin Salon, so much so that Alfa Romeo had to quickly increase production.

The super-advanced 1.3-litre, alloy, twin-cam engine—which would remain in production for the next four decades—was penned by ex-Ferrari engineer Giuseppe Busso.

For the advent of the more sporting Veloce model two years later, the rev-happy unit’s power was increased, while weight was cut by some 100 kilograms to leave the already lithe car to tip the scales at a featherweight 780 kilograms.

Equipped with indepen...