(printing) A decorative design, originally representing vine branches or tendrils, at the head of a chapter, of a manuscript or printed book, or in a similar position.
(by extension) Any small borderlesspicture in a book, especially an engraving, photograph, or the like, which vanishesgradually at the edge.
(by extension) A short story or anecdote that presents a scene or tableau, or paints a picture.
(photography) The characteristic of a camera lens, either by deficiency in design or by mismatch of the lens with the film format, to produce an image smaller than the film's frame with a crudely focused border. Photographers may deliberately choose this characteristic for a special effect.
“A vignette from the book of the dead shows a priest making offerings to two obelisks.”
“The highlights of that day on the Northumbrian coast remained clearly imprinted on Peter's memory but, like a photographic vignette, the peripheral events had become diffused and indistinct.”
“The scratched detailing of the vignettes and the presence of feathery foliage, pebbles, and floral bouquets enable the definitive attribution of these pieces to Giles.”
