Osvald Sirén (6 April 1879 – 26 June 1966) was a leading Scandinavian art historian, whose areas of expertise included the art of 18th century Sweden and Renaissance Italy, and in the latter part of his life, Chinese art. He then went on to become one of the first authorities of Chinese art in the West, focusing on painting, sculpture and architecture.

The publication of these volumes in 1927-1928 would have provided an early 20th century Western audience with an enchanting glimpse into the world of classical Chinese paintings, which would have featured traditional subjects such as mountainous river landscapes, birds, flowers, and ladies at leisure, accompanied with an artists’ colophon. The subject matter of these paintings when viewed with a knowledgeable eye also conveyed deeper symbolic messages, often on the subjects of beauty, virtue, and scholarly ideals.