Jungle shadow box SVG
A jungle clearing with palms against the sun, a leopard resting on a branch, a sloth hanging overhead, a silverback gorilla on the ground and ferns closing in at the front. 5 sheets of card, cut and stacked with a gap between each, make the picture. The files are free, and every part of the scene can be moved, swapped or resized below before you download.
5 sheets at 8 × 10 in, zipped, with a note on putting them together.
Free for personal and commercial use, no sign-up. What you can do with it.
The 5 sheets
Sheet 1 is the back and sheet 5 is the front. Each one is a single piece with the same frame round its edge, so they line up when stacked. The colours shown are the “Forest green” set; cut them in any card you like. Cut sheet 2, “Far palms”, the slowest: at 0.7 mm it has the thinnest part in the scene, and sheet 5, “Ferns”, fills the most of the view, 33% of it.
| Sheet | What is on it | Narrowest part | Seen from the front |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Sun | A whole sheet with holes for: Plain disc | over 2 mm | 22% |
| 2. Far palms | Rolling ground, with: Three palm trees and Double palm tree | 0.7 mm | 10% |
| 3. Sloth and palm | Rolling ground, with: Palm tree with coconuts and Sloth silhouette | over 2 mm | 13% |
| 4. Gorilla and leopard | Rolling ground, with: Silverback gorilla walking, Tree branch silhouette with broad leaves and Leopard lying down | 1.3 mm | 16% |
| 5. Ferns | A gentle slope, with: Ferns growing in a clump, Wild grass with seed heads, Fern frond with fifteen pairs of leaflets and Snake silhouette | 0.7 mm | 33% |
Measured from the files at 8 × 10 in. The narrowest part is the thinnest neck of card that holds anything on; sharp tips are not counted. “Seen from the front” is the share of the picture that sheet fills once the sheets in front of it are in place.
Will it cut at your size?
The download is 8 × 10 in. The scene maker above makes the same scene at any of these sizes; the thinnest part scales with it.
| Frame opening | Each sheet | Narrowest part | Depth needed | Fits a 12 × 12 in mat | Rule of thumb |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 × 10 in | 203.2 × 254 mm | 0.7 mm | 17 mm | Yes | Fine detail: sharp blade, slow speed |
Depth needed allows 3 mm of foam between sheets and 5 mm for the card itself and the backing.
Making this one
The leopard lies on a branch that grows in from the frame, so it is one piece with its sheet. Use three or four greens from pale to almost black: in a jungle the depth comes from the colour more than from the shapes.
- Cut all 5 sheets from 160 to 220 gsm card at the same size.
- Lay them out in order, sheet 1 at the back.
- Put strips of 3 mm foam tape round the border of sheet 1 and press sheet 2 onto it with the edges level. Carry on to sheet 5.
- Fit the stack into a deep frame with the front sheet against the glass. For a light box, run a strip of warm white LEDs round the inside of the frame behind the stack.
The zip includes these steps as a text file, each sheet as its own SVG and all 5 side by side in one SVG. More on paper, frames and lights is on the shadow box page.
The parts, on their own
Everything in the scene comes from the free SVG library, where each has its own page and file:
Questions
Is it suitable for a school rainforest project?
Yes. The gorilla and the palms are large shapes that can be cut with scissors from a print. The spots of the leopard are small holes, so for younger children swap it in the maker for the plain leopard silhouette.
Can I sell boxes I make with it?
Yes. Finished pieces are yours to sell. The files themselves may not be sold or shared; send people to this page. See the licence.
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