Featured Chinese Shadow Box

This is gorgeously carved natural coral flowers....

Yours is simplistic and quickly done....

 

That's beautiful and ... Italian? I feel like this is comparing apples to oranges. Granted, the artist that did my (this smaller one) shadow box may not have been the best one out there in his time but the "simplicity" of the design is in line with Chinese and Japanese flower arranging - less is more. In Japanese, it's referred to as Ikebana. Not sure what it's called in Chinese. If you read my history, I'm always more than ready to be convinced. So, I'm not trying to be stubborn. However, in this case, I've pointed out several obvious differences when comparing mine to the vintage shadow boxes I can find. And some I've yet to point out. I also have a larger shadow box (same source) that was created and signed by a more skilled artist and the flower below is from that one. I just took a quick picture of it and was planning on referring back to it but got distracted and now I'm too tired to take more pictures tonight, lol. I will tomorrow so y'all can see the difference in skill level between the two. Good night and thanks, all!

 

It is very pretty, Rastella.
The character on the vase is not a signature, but this character: 福, for happiness and longevity. It is one of the most popular characters on Chinese items.
Jade can be carved and has been for thousands of years, what the info on the site should have said is that it can't be carved using a knife. That goes for a lot of precious stones.

China is gemstone country, and the Chinese have made these delightful little scenes using their favourite stones for a very long time, just like the flowerpots with semi-precious stones or glass. These pretty shadowboxes were made in their thousands, with different backgrounds, execution of frames, etc. Favourite finishes for the frames were, as always with Chinese crafts, rosewood and lacquer. Many 'rosewood' frames were made of cheaper woods, stained to look like rosewood. Your frame is clearly stained, the inside is a very light colour.

The point people have been trying to make is not that your item isn't jade, etc, but that it has many, many siblings.
It is not artist signed, nor artist made. It is factory made, several people worked on the details, one person would be carving little vases all day, etc, etc. These people were not artists, and the carving of the pieces shows that. It is not contrived simplicity, it is just what they could do within their own limitations and the set production time limit. The finished pieces were assembled by yet more people, who used templates.The carved flowers, leaves, vases, etc would be used for different compositions.
Chips on the glass do not indicate it was handcut, just that the edge is chipped, with no real finish.
And as Holly said, the carving of the designs on the jade is left rough, it isn't polished. Lovely though it is, this is not a work of art.

 

Thank you for taking the time to write all of this. I sincerely appreciate it. Last night I went to bed feeling like I was spinning my wheels. I was prepared to get up this morning and take a whole lot more pictures and try my best to show everyone what I was seeing. But this morning, the thought exhausted me. However, still torn between going with my gut on this one and giving up, I felt I had to at least show it to someone so they could tell me in person to stop wasting my time - which was the most I had hoped for. What drove me to the decision to get in my car and take it somewhere is you all. You all have been a real blessing. You see, there's a balance that this group gives me between going with my gut and keeping myself in check. The last couple of times, y'all have been instrumental in keeping me in check and opening my eyes. I expected the very same eye-opening experience to happen this time as well ... but when I woke up this morning, it didn't happen. I stared at both of them for a long time and decided to find a reputable place to tell me to shut up and move on.

I found a place that sells upper-end English, American & Oriental antiques and furniture and accessories. They've been in the same location for many years. When I walked in, I felt a bit sheepish. The place was amazing. I almost ran out because I felt I was getting ready to waste this man's time. When he approached me I asked him how much a verbal "description" of my shadow boxes would cost me. I told him I wasn't interested in value at all. I just wanted to know what I have. Then I told him that better yet, I'd prefer a teaching moment and asked, "May I pay you to "tell you what I think I have and you tell me whether I'm right or wrong?" He said to show it to him first before quoting me a price to make sure it was worth it.

When he saw that it was Chinese shadow boxes, his first instinct was to warn me about all the fakes. He said he use to travel to China for antiques but sifting through the fakes to identify the real ones just became something he didn't want to do anymore. He still loves Chinese antiques and sells them but he doesn't travel to China for them anymore and doesn't do any written appraisals on them. He, instead, refers people to licensed appraisers if he thinks it's worth it. I started with the larger shadow box which caught his attention enough to let me continue. First, I showed him the silk fabric wrapped frame inset and told him I thought it was hand sewn silk fabric. He replied, "Looks like paper to me." I thought, "Wow. He's seeing this in person. I can't imagine what it must look like in pictures." I said, "It's dry from age. There's a tiny corner edge that's frayed. Feel it. I think you'll feel the silk." As he felt it, I could see it dawning on him that it was, in fact, silk fabric. He took it to the light and inspected it closer and then said, "Yes, that's definitely nice fabric they've got wrapped around it." I then went through everything else. He confirmed very easily that the stones were absolutely jade, coral and tigers eye. He completely understood when I said jade can't be carved (I think I impressed him just a little with that statement, lol). When I got to the hardware and the glass, he explained that he doesn't even look at that when evaluating authenticity and explained that he gets antique furniture all the time with new knobs and hinges. He spent approximately 45 minutes with me going over all the details of both of them. When we were done, he handed me a slip of paper with two reputable licensed appraisers and said that he's not sure if they appraised Oriental items but they could direct me to who does. He said it's unfortunate but most of his very good friends that had Oriental antique shops have closed down and decided to run their businesses other ways. He also said that about three times a month, he has Oriental experts coming through his shop, buying and taking it back to China to sell. I asked, "Do you think they'd buy something like this?" "Yes," was his reply. He said I picked up an extremely good buy. He estimated that they are early 20th century. I thanked him for his time and asked him how much I owed. "Nothing. Just keep me informed on what else you find out." On the way out, I asked, "So how did I do in explaining what I saw in these?" He smiled, "You know a whole lot more than the average person that comes in here."

I'll keep y'all updated. Thanks a million times over!