Jules Dalou (1838-1902) made this bust as a gift for the sitter's father, the collector Constantine Alexander Ionides (1833-1900), after he had bought 'La Liseuse', the first work ever sold in England by the sculptor. Miss Ionides was aged six or seven at the time.

The Sitter Helen Euphrosyne Ionides (1871-1967) received an M.B.E. in recognition of her work for the Red Cross during the Second World War.

Dalou (1838-1902) was the son of a glove maker and initially trained in drawing at the Petit École in Paris. There he was encouraged to do sculpture. In 1854 he entered the École des Beaux-Arts, where he trained for four years. He was known for his left-wing political sympathies and was involved in the establishment of the Paris Commune in 1871. After his overthrow he was forced into exile in London, where he lived from 1871 until his return to Paris in 1879. In London he frequently exhibited at the Royal Academy and he was given a teaching appointment at the National Art Training School in South Kensington (later the Royal College of Art), where he had a profound effect on the development of British sculpture.