By Katya Kazakina

April 10 (Bloomberg) -- A nude photograph of France's first lady Carla Bruni fetched $75,000, almost 20 times its high estimate, at Christie's International in New York today.

The image of Bruni, an Italian singer and former model, had an estimated range of $3,000 to $4,000. French president Nicolas Sarkozy married Bruni in February after divorcing his second wife, Cecilia, in October.

Alex Cao, a dealer at China Square Gallery in Chelsea, bought the photo, which cost $91,000 including fees. Cao was bidding on behalf of a Chinese collector, Christie's said.

The black-and-white photo, taken in 1993 by Michel Comte, was part of a 135-lot sale from the collection of Gert Elfering. The auction, which is continuing, also features nude photos of models Kate Moss, Gisele Bundchen and Naomi Campbell.

Proceeds from the Bruni sale will benefit Sodis, a Swiss organization that provides drinking water in poor countries.

Today's auction represents the third group of photos from Elfering's collection offered by Christie's since 2005. It is part of a week of photography sales in New York. On Tuesday, Sotheby's sold Edward Weston's photograph of his naked wife, Charis, for $325,000.

(Katya Kazakina is a reporter for Bloomberg News. The opinions expressed are her own.)