The American art collector Atherton Curtis (1863-1943) began collecting Japanese prints from the Edo period while living in New York, having made his fortune in medicine patents. In 1903 he settled in Paris with his first wife Louise Burleigh (1869-1910), where they formed an extensive art collection, including the work of many contemporary artists. Following Burleigh's death, Curtis married Ingeborg Flinch (1870-1943), to whom Jean Dunand inscribed the dedication 'À Madame Ingeborg Curtis, Souvenir Affectueux, Jean Dunand, 1915' on the present vase. Originally from Copenhagen, Flinch also devoted herself to Curtis' art collection, which was later bequeathed to museum collections including the Bibliothèque nationale de France and the Louvre.