How to SELECT the newest four items per category?

Question

I have a database of items. Each item is categorized with a category ID from a category table. I am trying to create a page that lists every category, and underneath each

Answer 1

not very pretty but:

SELECT image 
FROM item 
WHERE date_listed IN (SELECT date_listed 
                      FROM item 
                      ORDER BY date_listed DESC LIMIT 4)