::before (:before)
::before creates a
that is the first child of the element matched. It is often used to add cosmetic content to an element by using the
property. This element is inline by default.
/* CSS3 syntax */
element::before { style properties }
/* CSS2 obsolete syntax (only needed to support IE8) */
element:before
{ style properties }
/* inserts content before every p element */
p::before { content: "Hello world!"; }
The ::before notation was introduced in CSS3 in order to establish a discrimination between
and . Browsers also accept the notation :before introduced in CSS 2.
Adding quotation marks
One simple example of using pseudo-elements is to provide quotation marks. Here we use both ::before and ::after to insert quotation characters.
HTML content
&q&Some quotes&/q&, he said, &q&are better than none&/q&.
CSS content
q::before {
content: "<>";
Decorative example
We can style text or images in the
property almost any way we want.
HTML content
&span class="ribbon"&Notice where the orange box is.&/span&
CSS content
background-color: #5BC8F7;
.ribbon::before {
"Look at this orange box.";
background-color: #FFBA10;
border-color:
border-style:
To-do list
In this example we will create a simple to-do list using pseudo-elements. This method can often be used to add small touches to the UI and improve user experience.
HTML content
&li&Buy milk&/li&
&li&Take the dog for a walk&/li&
&li&Exercise&/li&
&li&Write code&/li&
&li&Play music&/li&
&li&Relax&/li&
CSS content
list-style-type:
padding: 0.5em 0.5em 0.5em 2
background:
font-family: sans-
background: #CCFF99;
li.done::before {
content: '';
border-color: #009933;
border-style:
border-width: 0 0.3em 0.25em 0;
margin-top: -1
transform: rotate(45deg);
width: 0.5
JavaScript content
var list = document.querySelector('ul');
list.addEventListener('click', function(ev) {
if( ev.target.tagName === 'LI') {
ev.target.classList.toggle('done');
}, false);
Here is the above code example running live. Note that there are no icons used, and the check-mark is actually the ::before that has been styled in CSS. Go ahead and get some stuff done.
Although the positioning fixes in Firefox 3.5 do not allow content to be generated as a separate previous sibling (as per the
stating "The :before and :after pseudo-elements elements interact with other boxes... as if they were real elements inserted just inside their associated element."), they can be used to provide a slight improvement on tableless layouts (e.g., to achieve centering) in that, as long as the content to be centered is wrapped in a further child, a column before and after the content can be introduced without adding a previous or following sibling (i.e., it is perhaps more semantically correct to add an additional span as below, than it would to add an empty &div/& before and after). (And always remember to add a width to a float, since, otherwise, it will not float!)
HTML content
&div class="example"&
&span id="floatme"&"Floated Before" should be generated on the left of the
viewport and not allow overflow in this line to flow under it. Likewise
should "Floated After" appear on the right of the viewport and not allow this
line to flow under it.&/span&
CSS content
#floatme { float: width: 50%; }
/* To get an empty column, just indicate a hex code for a non-breaking space: \a0 as the content (use \0000a0 when following such a space with other characters) */
.example::before {
content: "Floated Before";
width: 25%
.example::after {
content: "Floated After";
/* For styling */
.example::before, .example::after, .first {
background:
Specifications
Specification
Working Draft
No significant changes to the previous specification.
Working Draft
Allows transitions on properties defined on pseudo-elements.
Working Draft
Allows animations on properties defined on pseudo-elements.
Recommendation
Introduces the two-colon syntax.
Recommendation
Initial definition, using the one-colon syntax
Browser compatibility
Firefox (Gecko)
Internet Explorer
Safari (WebKit)
:before support
1.0 (1.7 or earlier) [1]
::before support
Support of animations and transitions
Not supported
Not supported
Not supported
Firefox Mobile (Gecko)
Opera Mobile
Safari Mobile
:before support
::before support
Support of animations and transitions
Not supported
Not supported
Not supported
[1] Firefox prior to version 3.5 only implemented the CSS 2.0 version of :before. Not allowed were , , list-style-* and some display properties. Firefox 3.5 removed those restrictions.
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中文 (简体)From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article does not
any . Please help
by . Unsourced material may be challenged and . (July 2011)
I Have Been Here Before is a play by , first produced by
at the , London, on 22 September 1937.
At a rural inn on a Yorkshire moor, three people enter a strange confrontation with the hallmarks of , and a physicist attempts to prevent a disaster.
Sam and his daughter Sally, proprietors of the Black Bull Inn, are awaiting the arrival of guests when an elderly German professor stops to make enquiries. T he asks unusual questions about the people staying at the inn, but his conjectures appear to be wrong. Shortly after he is turned away, the three women they had been expecting cancel their bookings by telephone. Sally is annoyed at the cancellation, but almost immediately they receive another telephone call from Mr and Mrs Ormund, a wealthy couple who book two rooms.
Their other guest, the schoolmaster Oliver Farrant, returns from a walk, and is closely followed by the professor, who has seen him enter. The professor introduces himself as Dr G?rtler, a German refugee, and asks eagerly for a room.
When the Ormunds arrive, Mr Farrant is startled to realise that they a the Ormunds are starting a school, and have already appointed him as headmaster. They chat briefly, but Mr Ormund does not take to him, and expresses reservations to his wife. Dr G?rtler joins the Ormunds and unnerves them by asking strangely accurate questions about their feelings of déjà vu. When G?rtler has gone to bed, Sally explains to the other guests the inexplicably successful predictions the professor had made that afternoon about their identities.
Mr Farrant and Mrs Ormund go out walking for the day. In their absence, Dr G?rtler interrogates Mr Ormund about his life. His probing into Mr Ormund's emotional state induces the unhappy man to make a quasi-suicide attempt, fetching a revolver from his car and firing it into the ground.
Upset by Dr G?rtler's questions and by his expounding of a doctrine of
to the landlord and guests, Sally and Mr Ormund demand that he leaves.
When Mr Farrant and Mrs Ormund come back from their walk, they admit to each other that they have studiously avoided crossing paths all day, in an unconscious attempt to fend off the fatalistic sense that they are doomed to deceive Mr Ormund. As the clock chimes, they embrace.
Mr Farrant examines Dr G?rtler's forgotten notebook. When Mr Ormund arrives, Mr Farrant and Mrs Ormund announce that they are leaving together. The sense of déjà vu is so overpowering that all of their emotional reactions are muted. Dr G?rtler returns for his notebook, and explains to them that he was brought here by a precognitive dream: this pair would elope, Mr Ormund would commit suicide, the school would fold, and the lives would be ruined of all concerned.
As a result of Dr G?rtler's intervention, there is no suicide. Mr Farrant and Mrs Ormund leave, but Mr Ormund takes the blow calmly, realising that his life has been saved.
Sally Pratt
Sam Shipley
Dr G?rtler
Oliver Farrant
Janet Ormund
Walter Ormund
The play was inspired by conjectures in 's book
(1931). Ouspensky had already expressed these ideas in fiction with
(1915, translated 1947).
Wikiquote has quotations related to:
: Hidden categories:.before() | jQuery API DocumentationFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Last Supper (: Il Cenacolo or L'Ultima Cena) is a late 15th-century
painting by
in the refectory of the Convent of . It is one of the world's most famous paintings, and one of the most studied, scrutinized, and satirized.
The work is presumed to have been commenced around 1495 and was commissioned as part of a scheme of renovations to the church and its convent buildings by Leonardo's patron , . The painting represents the scene of
with his disciples, as it is told in the , 13:21. Leonardo has depicted the consternation that occurred among the
when Jesus announced that one of them would betray him.
Due to the methods used, and a variety of environmental factors, very little of the original painting remains today, despite numerous restoration attempts, the last being completed in 1999.
Crucifixion, opposite Leonardo's Last Supper
The Last Supper, ca. 1520, by Giovanni Pietro Rizzoli, called
(active ), after Leonardo da Vinci, oil on canvas, currently in the collection of T an accurate, full-scale copy that was the main source for the twenty-year restoration of the original (). It includes several lost details such as Christ's feet and the salt cellar spilled by Judas. Giampietrino is thought to have worked closely with Leonardo when he was in .
The Last Supper measures 460&#160;cm ×&#160;880&#160;cm (180&#160;in ×&#160;350&#160;in) and covers an end wall of the dining hall at the monastery of
in Milan, Italy. The theme was a traditional one for , although the room was not a refectory at the time that Leonardo painted it. The main church building had only recently been completed (in 1498), but was remodeled by , hired by
to build a Sforza family mausoleum. The painting was commissioned by Sforza to be the centerpiece of the mausoleum. The
above the main painting, formed by the triple arched ceiling of the refectory, are painted with
. The opposite wall of the refectory is covered by the
fresco by , to which Leonardo added figures of the Sforza family in tempera. (These figures have deteriorated in much the same way as has The Last Supper.) Leonardo began work on The Last Supper in 1495 and completed it in 1498—he did not work on the painting continuously. The beginning date is not certain, as the archives of the convent for the period have been destroyed and a document dated 1497 indicates that the painting was nearly completed at that date. One story goes that a prior from the monastery complained to Leonardo about the delay, enraging him. He wrote to the head of the monastery, explaining he had been struggling to find the perfect villainous face for Judas, and that if he could not find a face corresponding with what he had in mind, he would use the features of the prior who complained.
A study for The Last Supper from Leonardo's notebooks showing nine apostles identified by names written above their heads
The Last Supper specifically portrays the reaction given by each apostle when Jesus said one of them would betray him. All twelve apostles have different reactions to the news, with various degrees of anger and shock. The apostles are identified from a
(The Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci p.&#160;232) with their names found in the 19th century. (Before this, only Judas, Peter, John and Jesus were positively identified.) From left to right, according to the apostles' heads:
form a group of three, all are surprised.
form another group of three. Judas is wearing green and blue and is in shadow, looking rather withdrawn and taken aback by the sudden revelation of his plan. He is clutching a small bag, perhaps signifying the silver given to him as payment to betray Jesus, or perhaps a reference to his role within the 12 disciples as treasurer. He is also tipping over the salt cellar. This may be related to the near-Eastern expression to "betray the salt" meaning to betray one's Master. He is the only person to have his elbow on the table and his head is also horizontally the lowest of anyone in the painting. Peter looks angry and is holding a knife pointed away from Christ, perhaps foreshadowing his violent reaction in Gethsemane during Jesus' arrest. The youngest apostle, John, appears to swoon.
are the next group of three. Tho the raised index finger foreshadows his Incredulity of the Resurrection. James the Greater looks stunned, with his arms in the air. Meanwhile, Philip appears to be requesting some explanation.
are the final group of three. Both Jude Thaddeus and Matthew are turned toward Simon, perhaps to find out if he has any answer to their initial questions.
In common with other depictions of The Last Supper from this period, Leonardo seats the diners on one side of the table, so that none of them has his back to the viewer. Most previous depictions excluded Judas by placing him alone on the opposite side of the table from the other eleven disciples and Jesus or placing halos around all the disciples except Judas. Leonardo instead has Judas lean back into shadow. Jesus is predicting that his betrayer will take the bread at the same time he does to Saints Thomas and James to his left, who react in horror as Jesus points with his left hand to a piece of bread before them. Distracted by the conversation between John and Peter, Judas reaches for a different piece of bread not noticing Jesus too stretching out with his right hand towards it (Matthew 26: 23). The angles and lighting draw attention to Jesus, whose head is located at the
for all perspective lines.
The painting contains several references to the number 3, which represents the Christian belief in the Holy Trinity. The Apostles are seated i there are three windows behind J and the shape of Jesus' figure resembles a triangle. There may have been other references that have since been lost as the painting deteriorated.
Two early copies of The Last Supper are known to exist, presumed to be work by Leonardo's assistants. The copies are almost the size of the original, and have survived with a wealth of original detail still intact. One accurate copy, by , is in the collection of the , and the other, with some alterations to the background design, by , is installed at the Church of St. Ambrogio in , Switzerland.
For this work, Leonardo sought a greater detail and luminosity than could be achieved with traditional . He painted The Last Supper on a dry wall rather than on wet , so it is not a true fresco. Because a fresco cannot be modified as the artist works, Leonardo instead chose to seal the stone wall with a double layer of dried plaster. Then, borrowing from , he added an undercoat of
to enhance the brightness of the oil and
that was applied on top. This was a method that had been described previously, by
in the 14th century. However, Cennini had recommended the use of secco for the final touches alone. These techniques were important for Leonardo's desire to work slowly on the painting, giving him sufficient time to develop the gradual shading or
that was essential in his style.
This section needs additional citations for . Please help
by . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (May 2012)
A protective structure was built in front of the da Vinci wall fresco. This photo shows the bombing damage in 1943, suggesting the magnitude of the greater damage that was averted.
The Last Supper, ca. 1520, , after Leonardo da Vinci, oil on canvas, currently in the Leonardo da Vinci Museum, .
Because the painting was on a thin exterior wall, the effects of
were felt more keenly, and the paint failed to properly adhere to the wall. Because of the method used, soon after the painting was completed on February 9, 1498 it began to deteriorate. As early as 1517, the painting was starting to flake. By 1556 — fewer than sixty years after it was finished&#160;— Leonardo's
described the painting as already "ruined" and so deteriorated that the figures were unrecognizable. By the second half of the sixteenth century
stated that, “…the painting is all ruined.” In 1652, a doorway was cut through the (then unrecognisable) painting,
this can still be seen as the irregular
shaped structure near the center base of the painting. It is believed, through early copies, that Jesus' feet were in a position symbolizing the forthcoming crucifixion. In 1768, a curtain was hung over the painting for the p it instead trapped moisture on the surface, and whenever the curtain was pulled back, it scratched the flaking paint.
A first restoration was attempted in 1726 by Michelangelo Bellotti, who filled in missing sections with
the whole mural. This repair did not last well and another restoration was attempted in 1770 by an otherwise unknown artist named Giuseppe Mazza. Mazza stripped off Bellotti's work then largely re he had redone all but three faces when he was halted due to public outrage. In 1796, French revolutionary anti-clerical troops used
they threw stones at the painting and climbed ladders to scratch out the Apostles' eyes. The refectory was then la it is not known if any of the prisoners may have damaged the painting. In 1821, , an expert in removing whole frescoes from their walls intact, was called in to remove the painting he badly damaged the center section before realizing that Leonardo's work was not a . Barezzi then attempted to reattach damaged sections with . From 1901 to 1908,
first completed a careful study of the structure of the painting, then began cleaning it. In 1924,
did further cleaning, and stabilised some parts with .
During , on August 15, 1943, the refectory was struck by A protective
prevented the painting from being struck by bomb splinters, but it may have been damaged further by the . From 1951 to 1954, another clean-and-stabilise restoration was undertaken by Mauro Pelliccioli.
The painting as it looked in the 1970s
The painting's appearance by the late 1970s had become badly deteriorated. From 1978 to 1999, Pinin Brambilla Barcilon guided a major restoration project which undertook to stabilize the painting, and reverse the damage caused by dirt and pollution. The 18th- and 19th-century restoration attempts were also reverted. Since it had proved impractical to move the painting to a more controlled environment, the refectory was instead converted to a sealed,
environment, which meant bricking up the windows. Then, detailed study was undertaken to determine the painting's original form, using scientific tests (especially
reflectoscopy and microscopic core-samples), and original
preserved in the Royal Library at . Some areas were deemed unrestorable. These were re-painted using
in subdued colors intended to indicate they were not original work, while not being too distracting.
This restoration took 21 years and on 28 May 1999 the painting was returned to display, although intending visitors are required to book ahead and can only stay for 15 minutes. When it was unveiled, considerable controversy was aroused by the dramatic changes in colors, tones, and even some facial shapes. ,
and founder of , had been a particularly strong critic. Michael Daley, director of ArtWatch UK, has also complained about the restored version of the painting. He has been critical of Christ's right arm in the image which has been altered from a draped sleeve to what Daley calls "muff-like drapery".
The Last Supper made in salt in
A 16th-century oil on canvas copy is conserved in the , , . It reveals many details that are no longer visible on the original. The
made another life-sized copy () in the
painted , with Jesus portrayed as blonde and clean shaven, pointing upward to a spectral torso while the apostles are gathered around the table heads bowed so that none may be identified. It is reputed to be one of the most popular paintings in the collection of the
was commissioned to produce a series of paintings based on The Last Supper that were exhibited initially in Milan. This was his last series of paintings before his death.
was inspired by The Last Supper, rendering it as a life-sized, three-dimensional, sculptural assemblage using painted and drawn wood, plywood, brownstone, plaster and aluminum. This work, Self-Portrait Looking at The Last Supper, (1982–84) is in New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art.
In 1988, the Australian artist
painted , replacing Leonardo's 13 similar-featured men with women from around the world, with an aboriginal woman in the position of Christ.
In 1998, modern artist
displayed a recreation of The Last Supper, made entirely out of .
In 2001, Chinese artist
painted Last Supper, showing 13 mask-wearing people seated at a table strewn with watermelon fragments. The oil painting was sold for $23.3 million at Sotheby's auction on October 7, 2013, setting a new record for contemporary Asian artwork.
In 2004, Irish artist
created "Supper", a 9.3 by 2.2 metre photo screen-printed onto vitreous enamel, depicting his modern Irish take on the painting with 13 everyday Dubliners. The piece is displayed outdoors in the Millennium Walkway north of the
In 2011, American cartoonist
published a cartoon in which the toddler Leonardo, having time-traveled to our century, needs to be fed. The solution is a fast-food place, and the scene at the eatery is laid out in a replica of The Last Supper.
describes her impression of the painting in her travel narrative, Rambles in Germany and Italy published in 1844:
First we visited the fading inimitable fresco of Leonardo da Vinci. How vain are copies! not in one, nor in any print, did i ever see the slightest approach to the expression in our Saviour's face, such as it is in the original. Majesty and love&#160;— these are the words that would describe it&#160;— joined to an absence of all guile that expresses the divine nature more visibly than I ever saw it in any other picture.
—,&#160;'Travel Writing (1996), Pages 131–132
In the film version of
(1970) a shot of the guests at Dr. Waldowski's staged "" references the arrangement and pose of the figures in Leonardo's painting. The scene is presented, momentarily, as a —a living picture.
In ' 1981 comedy film , Brooks plays a waiter who enters a private room where the Last Supper is taking place, eventually being painted into the picture standing behind Jesus holding a serving plate behind Jesus' head to mimic a halo.
Spanish film , a tableau vivant of Leonardo's painting is staged with beggars. Another beggar 'photographs' the scene by flashing them. This scene contributed to its refusal by the Vatican who called it "blasphemous."
series, the painting is one of several Renaissance works of art stolen by extraterrestrials in the episode "Artless".
The Last Supper has also been the target of much speculation by writers and historical revisionists alike, usually centered on purported hidden messages or hints found within the painting.
Some have identified the person to Jesus' right (left of Jesus from the viewer's perspective), not as John the Apostle, but a woman, often purported to be . This speculation was the topic of the book
and Clive Prince, and plays a central role in 's fiction novel
There have also been other popular speculations about the work. It has been suggested that there is no cup in the painting, yet Jesus' left hand is pointing to the
and his right to a glass of wine. (There are several glasses on the table, but they are difficult to see owing to the work's deterioration and restorations.) This is not the glorified chalice of legend as Leonardo insisted on realistic paintings. To add realism, Leonardo copied the style of the plates, glasses, utensils and the table cloth from the Dominican friars' refectory.
Giovanni Maria Pala, an Italian musician, has indicated that the positions of hands and loaves of bread can be interpreted as notes on a musical staff, and if read from right to left, as was characteristic of Leonardo's writing, form a musical composition.
Sabrina Sforza Galitzia, a Vatican researcher, claimed to have deciphered the "mathematical and astrological" puzzle in Leonardo's The Last Supper. She said that he foresaw the
in a "universal flood" which would begin on March 21, 4006, and end on November 1 the same year. She believed that this would mark "a new start for humanity".
. . 5 March 2008.
Kenneth Clark.Leonardo da Vinci, Penguin Books , p144.
. lairweb.org.nz.
. The Mark Steel Lectures. Series 2. Episode 2. The Open University. 7 October 2003. .
. Gutenberg.org. 1 January 2004.
Cfr. Matthew 26:15; John 12:6 and 13:29.
. University of the Arts, London.
. Smart history presented by the Khan Academy 2014.
. The Last Supper 2014.
Phillip William (24 May 1999). .
(guardian.co.uk).
Dayla Alberge (14 March 2012). . .
Haden-Guest, Anthony (3 August 1999). . artnet Magazine.
. Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Goldberg, Vicki (25 September 1998). .
. . October 7, 2013.
(Press release). Circa Art magazine. July 2004.
Bill Holbrook&#160;(c).&#160;Safe Havens.&#160;16 November 2011,&#160;.
Shelley, Mary (1996). Travel Writing. London: Pickering. pp.&#160;131–132. &#160;.
Alex Carlson (1 June 2008). . .
. TV.com. .
Rossella Lorenzi (9 November 2007). . Discovery News.
, hosted.ap.org
Richard Owen (15 March 2010). .
(WWRN.org).
Steinberg, Leo. Leonardo's Incessant 'Last Supper'". New York: Zone Books, 2001.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to .
, exhibition catalog fully online as PDF from The Metropolitan Museum of Art, which contains material on The Last Supper (see index)
: Hidden categories:}