Ioannis (John) Rodocanachi was born in Alexandria (Egypt) in 1866. His father, Pandias M. Rodocanachi, was active in the trading business, and his mother Kleopatra, came from the Synadinos family. He himself was a friend of C. P. Cavafy, but left Alexandria at a young age to settle in Liverpool (England), where he finished his studies and started working.