As a racing enthusiast, Elio Zagato was intrigued by the potential of Alfa Romeo’s short-wheelbase 1900C platform.

In early 1954 his carrozzeria clothed a chassis with lightweight aluminum coachwork now regarded as one of the company’s finest designs.

The skin-tight body featured a sculpted nose and bulging hood with a single inlet to feed the SS engine’s high-profile Weber carburetors.

Campaigned by Zagato’s Sant Ambroeus competition concern, the coachbuilt 1900C showed considerable promise, prompting Alfa Romeo to approve a small batch of officially sanctioned cars.

Approximately 39 examples of the resulting 1900C Super Sprint Zagato were built through 1956, and for a short period the beautiful berlinetta held quite a sway over the 2-liter class in European sports car racing.

Six different examples were entered at the 1955 Mille Miglia alone, and Joakim Bonnier took a class win at the Sverige Grand Prix in August 1955, beating a host of Porsches and Fiat 8Vs.

As a consummate ag...