The Lamborghini Miura is the car most historians credit with inventing the supercar, and it now lives a second life as collectible sculpture. Launched in 1966, it was the first road car to sit a mid-mounted V12 behind the driver, the layout every modern supercar still copies. French sculptor Antoine Dufilho rebuilds that shape in stacked metal plates, turning the Miura's silhouette into a limited-edition art object.
Facts on this page were checked in July 2026 against Lamborghini's own history pages and Antoine Dufilho's studio and gallery listings.
What makes the Lamborghini Miura the first supercar?
The Miura earned the title by moving the engine to the middle of the car for the road, not just the racetrack. Fast road cars before it carried their engines up front. Lamborghini mounted a transverse 3.9-litre V12 behind the cabin, which dropped the center of mass and freed the nose for a low, predatory profile.
Lamborghini showed the Miura at the Geneva Motor Show on 10 March 1966, and buyers walked away rethinking what a fast road car could be. The factory built 763 examples across three versions between 1966 and 1973.
| Version | Years | Units | Power |
|---|---|---|---|
| P400 | 1966–1969 | 465 | 350 CV at 7,000 rpm |
| P400 S | 1969–1971 | 138 | 370 CV at 7,700 rpm |
| P400 SV | 1971–1972 | 148 | 385 CV at 7,850 rpm |
Only 763 cars exist, which is why an original Miura now trades in the millions and why the shape is worth reinterpreting as art. The name came from the Miura fighting-bull breed, part of the bull theme Ferruccio Lamborghini gave the marque.
Who designed the Miura, and why does its shape still matter?
Marcello Gandini drew the Miura while he was head of design at Carrozzeria Bertone, Lamborghini's first collaboration with the studio. The prototype came together in early 1966 with a team of about 30 Bertone staff, who wrapped a steel chassis in bodywork that still looks quick standing still.
The shape matters because it fixed the visual grammar of the supercar: a long low nose, a cabin pushed forward, and haunches built around a mid-engine. Gandini made those proportions desirable, and designers have chased them ever since. That is also what makes the Miura such useful material for a sculptor, because the profile reads as speed even when the object never moves.
How does Antoine Dufilho turn the Miura into a sculpture?
Dufilho rebuilds the Miura from successive metal layers, alternating solid plate and open space so the body seems to dissolve when you face it straight on. He calls the method Streamline, and it grew out of his first work, a Bugatti Atlantic he built in 2012. He came to sculpture from two other fields: he studied medicine for three years, working on human biomechanics, then trained as an architect at the Lille School of Architecture. Both show in the way he engineers a car from stacked cross-sections.
His Miura leans into the model's 1970s character. Dufilho has made a raw-metal Miura and an orange version that points back to the period's colour, giving the car a sharper, almost architectural reading than his rounder subjects such as the Ferrari 250 GTO. The Miura sits in his Lamborghini series next to the Murciélago and the Revuelto.
What is a Dufilho Miura sculpture made of, and how is it editioned?
A collection-format Dufilho sculpture is built from 60 to 300 machined parts, cut to a tolerance of a tenth of a millimetre and assembled by hand over 7 to 30 days. He works mostly in stainless steel, with mirror-polished and microblasted finishes, and adds aluminium for the hammered fuselage plates and the solid polished wheels. Since 2013 he has also worked in Macassar ebony, and more recently in carbon fibre. His choice of materials is part of how each car gets its character.
Each collection piece is released as an edition of 8, with 4 further artist proofs. A typical wall or shelf sculpture runs about 80 by 36 cm, sits 17 to 20 cm deep, and weighs close to 30 kg. Commissions scale up hard from there; his monumental cars, like the steel-tube Porsche 911, pass 4 metres and several tonnes.
| Attribute | Collection sculpture |
|---|---|
| Edition | 8 copies plus 4 artist proofs |
| Components | 60 to 300 machined parts |
| Precision | 0.1 mm tolerance |
| Materials | stainless steel, aluminium, corten, ebony, carbon |
| Size | about 80 x 36 cm, 17 to 20 cm deep |
| Weight | about 30 kg |
| Build time | 7 to 30 days |
Pick the collection format if the piece is for a home or an office. Ask about a monumental commission if you are dressing a lobby, a showroom, or a garden.
Why collect a Miura sculpture instead of the car?
Choose the sculpture when you want the Miura's presence without the running costs, the storage, or the seven-figure price of an original. A genuine 1966 to 1973 Miura is a rolling museum piece that needs climate-controlled storage and specialist mechanics. A Dufilho Miura gives you the same silhouette as a static object you can keep indoors and never insure against the road.
Scarcity still applies, which is the part collectors care about. With 8 numbered copies plus 4 artist proofs, a collection Miura is about as rare as some of the original variants were. Dufilho's work already sits in private collections including those of Jean Todt and Peter Mullin, and his Bugatti Atlantic is displayed at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, so the provenance is there before you buy. If you want help reading edition numbers and pricing, start with our guide to collecting his work.
For collectors who already own the car, the sculpture works as a companion piece. For everyone else, it is the closest you will get to parking a Miura in the living room.
Frequently asked questions
How many Lamborghini Miuras were built?
Lamborghini built 763 Miuras between 1966 and 1973: 465 P400, 138 P400 S, and 148 P400 SV.
Is the Antoine Dufilho Miura a limited edition?
Yes. His collection sculptures are released in editions of 8, plus 4 artist proofs, and each one is assembled from 60 to 300 machined parts.
What is Dufilho's Streamline technique?
It is a layered method where thin metal blades run the length of the car and alternate material with empty space, so the sculpture appears to vanish when you view it straight on.
Where can you see Antoine Dufilho's work?
He is represented in more than 40 galleries in cities including Paris, Geneva, London, Miami, and Dubai, and his Bugatti Atlantic is on show at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles.
