Its a milestone, and one many of us would chose to forget, yet turning 60 signifies a certain vintage and all that goes with that.

The Jaguar E-Type celebrates its 60th anniversary this week and the classic British sports car is still a design and performance masterpiece.

Enzo Ferrai once said that the Jaguar E-Type “is the most beautiful car in the world”.

The Jaguar E-Type made its debut at the Geneva Motor Show in 1961 and was a big hit, generating £11 million of new orders (around US$274 million in today’s money).

Those first E-Types had a 3.8 litre engine with a four-speed manual gearbox and had a top speed of 150 miles per hour.

On its debut car magazine, Autocar wrote: “The E-Type is a breakthrough in the design of high performance vehicle for sale to the public. It is vastly superior to its predecessors in a number of respects and to competitors within the £1,000 of its price .It offers what drivers have so long asked for, namely sports-car racing performance and handling, combined with the docility, gentle suspension and appointments of a town car.”

Jaguar later put in a. 4.2 litre engine with better brakes and electrics. The E-Type would go on to have a 5.3 litre V12 engine.

Sixty years on, the classic Jaguar E-Type Reborn programme will see Series 1 E-Types restored to their original specification for future generations of enthusiasts and collectors.

The Jaguar E-Type was a game changer in luxurious sports cars and became a work of art with Malcolm Sayer’s design displayed at the MoMA in New York.

Here’s to the iconic Jaguar E-Type. Happy Birthday. We salute your elegance, refinement and good looks.