Some like it snapshot! Black and white Marilyn Monroe photographs sell for $750,000

Hundreds of photographs of iconic U.S. actress Marylin Monroe went on sale at an auction house in Poland last night.
The collection of snaps taken by celebrity photographer Milton H Green, which included famous images of Marylin Mornroe and other celebrities of the time, sold for nearly $750,000.
Marylin Monroe and Milton H Greene were business partners and close friends and his candid shots of her, including the image of her in a ballerina dress, give a unique insight into the life of the blonde bombshell.

Intimate: The prints of Marylin Monroe were taken by her close friend and business partner, celebrity photographer Milton H Greene

The pictures of Monroe were taken from 1953 to 1957 when the moviestar had a close friend- and partnership with Mr Greene.
The pair ran a production company together during which time Monroe modelled for him in 52 sessions, creating some of the most memorable snaps of her.

Milton Greene was a prominent fashion photographer of the time and shot many other celebrities, photos of which were on sale last night.
His Monroe prints are highly valued by collectors and include series of refined black-and-white studio photos and shots taken in natural surroundings, sometime in provocative poses.

Iconic: The image of Marylin Monroe in a ballerina dress sold for $20,000

Some of the 238 pictures from Milton Greene's portfolio up for sale last night have never been published before and Desa Unicum house in Warsaw was filled to the brim.
Juliusz Windorbski, head of the auction house in the Polish capital, said it was the largest ever sale of Greene's photos.
'Until now, Greene's photos were sold one by one or in lots of no more than a few, but never so many at once,' Windorbski said.

The photos come from a collection of some 4,000 Greene pictures that Poland obtained from Chicago businessman Dino Matingas in the mid-1990s as the result of a complex communist-era embezzlement scandal linked to the buy-out of Poland's state debt.

Packed: Hundreds of spectators and bidders gatheres in Desa Unicum house in Warsaw to see the 238 strong collection

Inimitable: Ther close friendship between Milton H Greene and Monroe meant unique shots like this one, which sold for $16,000

As the bidding began, a black-and-white photo of a reclining Monroe in black stockings sold for $16,000 (50,000 zlotys), and another of her in a ballerina's dress sold for almost $20,000.
A picture of her in bed sold for $8,500.
The 2.4 million zlotys ($735,000) obtained made it the nation's biggest photo auction to date as only one remained unsold.
The auction also offered Greene's pictures of other stars, like Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly, Marlene Dietrich and Liza Minnelli.

Success: The collection had been estimated to fetch $680,000 but sold for over $735,000

Other greats in the vast portrait collection, which had been estimated at $680,000, included Cary Grant, Frank Sinatra, Paul Newman, Alfred Hitchcock and Marlon Brando.
Marylin Monroe, real name Norma Jean Baker, began her career as a model in the early 40s and had her breakthrough on the silver screen in 1950s movies All About Eve and The Asphalt Jungle.
Her blonde curls and dangerous curves earned her sex symbol status which has lasted for decades.
She died on August 5, 1962, aged 36, from a barbiturate overdose at her Los Angeles home.