NEW YORK, NY.- Christie’s announced the sale of a Cycladic marble reclining female figure, the most important Cycladic idol ever to come to auction on December 9. Estimated at $3-5 million, the folded-arm female figure is one of the most iconic sculptural types to have survived from antiquity. To date, there are only twelve known sculptures that have been recognized as the work of a single artist today known as the Schuster Master, named after the previous owner of the present work, Marion Schuster. Most of Schuster Master’s works represent the female in a pregnant state. Like the sculptures by his contemporaries, the position of the feet pointing down indicates that the figures are meant to be perceived as reclining. The Schuster Master, who was active circa 2400 B.C., combines characteristics of