The king shall drink to Hamlet’s better breath; And in the cup an union shall he throw, Richer than that which four successive kings In Denmark’s crown have worn.[371] It is stated that a pearl worth £15,000 was reduced to powder and drunk by Sir Thomas Gresham, the English merchant, in the presence of the Spanish ambassador, as a tribute to Queen Elizabeth, by whom he had been knighted.[372] The most celebrated instance of enriching a drink with a pearl was doubtless Cleopatra’s tribute to Antony, Pliny’s account of which we give in the words of old Philemon Holland: This princesse, when _M. Antonius_ had strained himselfe to doe her all the pleasure he possibly could, and had feasted her day by day most sumptuously, and spared for no cost: in the hight of her pride and wanton braverie (as being a noble courtezan, and a queene withall) began to debase the expense and provision of Antonie, and made no reckoning of all his costly fare. When he thereat demanded againe how it was possible to goe beyond this magnificence of his, she answered againe, that she would spend upon him at one supper ten million Sestertij. _Antonie_ laid a great wager with her about it, and shee bound it againe, and made it good. The morrow after, _Cleopatra_ made _Antonie_ a supper which was sumptuous and roiall ynough: howbeit, there was no extraordinarie service seene upon the board: whereat _Antonius_ laughed her to scorne, and by way of mockerie required to see a bill with the account of the particulars. She again said, that whatsoever had been served up alreadie was but the overplus above the rate and proportion in question, affirming still that she would yet in that supper make up the full summe that she was seazed at: yea, herselfe alone would eat above that reckoning, and her owne supper should cost 60 million Sestertij: and with that commanded the second service to be brought in. The servitors set before her one only crewet of sharpe vineger, the strength whereof is able to resolve pearles. Now she had at her eares hanging these two most precious pearles, the singular and only jewels of the world, and even Natures wonder. As _Antonie_ looked wistly upon her, shee tooke one of them from her eare, steeped it in the vineger, and so soon as it was liquified, dranke it off. And as she was about to doe the like by the other, _L. Plancius_ the judge of that wager, laid fast hold upon it with his hand, and pronounced withal, that _Antonie_ had lost the wager.[373]