1.
frontispiece; title page illustration; opening illustration
An illustration on or facing the title page of a book, or the opening illustration of a chapter or section in a manga, magazine, or publication.
この漫画の扉絵がとても綺麗だ。
The opening illustration of this manga is really beautiful.
有名な画家が扉絵を描いた。
A famous painter drew the frontispiece.
週刊連載の漫画は毎回異なる扉絵が添えられており、単行本では収録されないものもある。
The weekly serialized manga has a different opening illustration each time, and some are not included in the collected volumes.
Composed of 扉 (door; title page) and 絵 (picture). In publishing, 扉 refers to the title page, so 扉絵 is literally the picture on the title/opening page.
USAGE:
Very common in manga fandom, where each chapter's opening page illustration is called a 扉絵. These are often specially drawn and may contain hidden details or foreshadowing. In book publishing, it refers to the frontispiece — a decorative or thematic illustration at the beginning of a volume.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 扉絵を描く: to draw a frontispiece / opening illustration
- 連載の扉絵: the opening illustration of a serialized work
- 扉絵コレクション: collection of title illustrations
- カラー扉絵: color opening page
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 挿絵: illustration (inserted in text) — drawings placed within the body of the text, not specifically at the opening
- 表紙: cover — the outer cover of a book or magazine, distinct from the interior title page
- 口絵: frontispiece (of a book) — a near-synonym, though 口絵 is used more in traditional publishing while 扉絵 is also common in manga