Pride of lions shadow box SVG
A pride of lions at sunset on a wide sheet: a large low sun, two trees on the far plain, a lion with a full mane standing on a rise, a lioness and a cub walking below him, and at the front a second lion lying down between a spreading tree and long grass. 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 10 × 8 in, landscape, 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 “Sunset” set; cut them in any card you like. Cut sheet 4, “Lioness and cub”, the slowest: at 1.7 mm it has the thinnest part in the scene, and sheet 5, “Resting lion and grass”, fills the most of the view, 36% 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 | 29% |
| 2. Far trees | A gentle slope, with: Oak tree with a broad crown and Round tree silhouette | over 2 mm | 6% |
| 3. Lion on the rise | Rolling ground, with: Standing lion with a full mane | over 2 mm | 13% |
| 4. Lioness and cub | Rolling ground, with: Lioness on the prowl and Lion cub | 1.7 mm | 10% |
| 5. Resting lion and grass | A gentle slope, with: Oak tree with a broad crown, Lion lying down and Grass silhouette | 1.7 mm | 36% |
Measured from the files at 10 × 8 in, landscape. 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 10 × 8 in, landscape. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 × 8 in, landscape | 254 × 203.2 mm | 1.7 mm | 17 mm | Yes | Cuts easily |
Depth needed allows 3 mm of foam between sheets and 5 mm for the card itself and the backing.
Making this one
The standing lion is about 7 cm high at 10 by 8 inches, the lioness about 4 cm and the cub about 3.3 cm. The mane, the eye and the line of the shoulder are cut through, so the sheet behind shows in them. This is one of the sturdier scenes to cut: the lioness and the cub are about 1.7 mm at their finest, and so is the front sheet with the lying lion. The far trees are about 1.6 mm, and the standing lion is sturdier than any of them. Nothing hangs on a thread. The Sunset colours as shown run from pale gold to deep plum. The Autumn colours give a drier, dustier plain.
- 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
Can I cut it by hand?
Yes. It is five sheets of large shapes with long curves, and the smallest cut-outs are the eyes and the lines in the manes. Print each sheet at full size, tape it over the card and cut through both, inside shapes first.
How is this different from the safari scene?
Here there are only lions, on a wide sheet. The Safari sunset scene is upright, with giraffes and elephants behind two smaller lions, and the Elephant herd scene has elephants alone.
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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