It's been 24 years since Madonna told the world she's a 'Material Girl,' but the pop singer still fetches a high price. A full-frontal, nude photo of a 20-year-old Madonna went for $37,500 at auction Thursday, an apparent record auction price for a photograph of the singer - nude or otherwise.
Madonna Louise Ciccone was a dancer trying to make ends meet when she answered a newspaper ad seeking a nude model. She may have earned as little as $25 for the 1979 photo session. Christie's auction house expected to sell the photograph for up to $15,000; It was purchased by an unnamed European buyer for over twice the expected price.
Another photograph of Madonna, by Helmut Newton, sold Thursday for $18,750, beating a $15,000 estimate. In that shot, also sold to Playboy in the 1980s, Madonna sports lingerie, curly blond hair and a seductive expression. A man kneels beside her.
The Madonna photos were among 150 images, by some of the biggest names in photography, auctioned from the collection of Leon and Michaela Constantiner. They feature fashion and other celebrity icons.
The sale fetched more than $900,000 in all, including a top price of $242,500 for "Sie Kommen," Newton's images of nude models for the Italian and French versions of Vogue in the 1980s.
