Emile Josome Hodinos, whose real name was Joseph Ernest Ménétrier, was born in Paris to baker parents. His father died when he was eight years old, and he was then sent to boarding school. In 1869, he began an apprenticeship at the workshop of Tasset, a renowned engraver who designed all the official medals of the Third Republic. At the same time, he took drawing and modeling classes at an art school for four years. His life took a sudden turn, and he was committed to the Ville-Evrard asylum in the Parisian suburbs, where he remained until his death. It was then that he adopted the pseudonym Emile Josome Hodinos.

At the asylum, Emile Josome Hodinos drew countless medal designs in graphite enhanced with India ink, inserting meticulous handwritten comments signed with his name. He used recycled paper, originally intended for making biscuits, as his supports. Lacking his usual tools, he uses strips of paper as compasses or balusters to calculate the dimensions of his figurines, primarily female with exaggerated anatomical features. He then circles them, thus creating models for medals.