By the mid-1970s, the worldwide trend in sports car design had evolved from the curvaceous and flowing shapes of post-war air tunnels to the air-splitting power of aggressive, crisp geometric shapes—what would famously become known as the “wedge” era. Always at the leading edge, Ferrari itself began evolving wedge-shaped designs, while in the United States, Luigi Chinetti, the US importer and North American Racing Team (NART) principal, commissioned his own iterations. In the mid-1970s Chinetti ordered no fewer than five 365 GTB/4 Daytonas to be rebodied by Giovanni Michelotti—each individually built with myriad distinguishing details, but sharing an angular, blade-like shark-nose motif, with a single unwavering beltline from nose to tail. They were, in many senses, the most aggressive Daytonas ever built.

Chassis number 14299, the first of three Michelotti Spiders configured for Chinetti to roadgoing specifications, was based on a standard 365 GTB/4 coupe with air conditioning and power steering. It was originally delivered to a favored Chinetti client by the name of Dr. Silva. In the mid-1970s Chinetti took the car back on trade, and in 1976 sent it to Michelotti. It was finished in a unique two-tone livery of dark blue over gray, with an orange-hued leather interior incorporating the original Veglia Borletti gauges, five-spoke alloy wheels, tan soft top, and body-color removable hardtop.

Chinetti took delivery of the NART Spider, as he dubbed it, in 1977, and promptly gifted it to his wife, Marion, whose name was emblazoned on the beltline of each door. Three years later he loaned the “Marion Spider” back to Michelotti, who presented it on his stand at the 1980 Turin Motor Show, after which the car was exhibited for two years in the Le Mans Museum at France, followed by a 1984 appearance at the La Baule Concours d’Elegance.

By the time that the Spider returned stateside in 1985, Mrs. Chinetti had passed away, and so her husband chose to sell her car. It was acquired by Los Angeles-based dealer Marty Yacobian, who presented it at the Palm Springs Concours d’Elegance in 1986. Yacobian sold the Ferrari in 1990 to a dealer in Florida, from whom it passed to Marv Tonkin, brother of the well-known Ron Tonkin, and finally in 1991 to acclaimed Ferrari collector Jon Shirley. Among the best-known tifosi for decades, Mr. Shirley is well-known for his renowned stable, which for some years included virtually all the great Ferrari models, including the first Ferrari to win Best of Show at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. The “Marion Spider” remained part of his collection for 22 years, and late in his ownership was certified by Ferrari Classiche with an Attestation of Historical Interest, an honor bestowed upon cars deemed to possess important competition or show history subsequent to when they were first sold by Ferrari. The same document confirms that the car regains its original 365 GTB/4 chassis and engine, while the gearbox is a replacement stamped by Classiche.

In August 2013 the car was acquired by another prominent Ferrari collector, in whose hands it appeared at the Cavallino Classic in January 2014, winning an award for Design Distinction, as well as at several other Eastern events. In this ownership it was not just, as they say, a pretty face, as it also accrued some 3,000 miles of rally use, including in the Copperstate 1000! Finally it was purchased by the consignor, a longtime enthusiast who for decades has gathered some of the most extraordinary Ferraris, in the summer of 2019.

A unique glimpse of Michelotti’s interpretation of the famed Daytona and a vision of, literally, the future of Italian design, the “Marion Spider” is steeped in the provenance of the famed Luigi Chinetti and the revered Jon Shirley. With only about 6,000 miles recorded since its 1976 completion, it is sure to draw attention at future events and concours, where its sublime styling will be the head-turner it was at Turin and Le Mans.