A gift from the sea
Cleopatra swallowed me
crushed in vinegar
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| Writing Prompt |
Write a 5-7-5 about a mystery object. Photos that fit the theme are a nice touch, but do not give away the mystery object in the photo or in the text of the poem. The mystery object should be revealed in the notes. |
Author Notes
What am I? A Pearl.
Legend has it that, in order to show her wealth and power, Cleopatra VII (69 B.C. - 30 B.C.) made a bet with her lover â?? the Roman leader Marc Antony â?? that she could spend 10 million sesterces on one meal.
"She ordered the second course to be served. In accordance with previous instructions, the servants placed in front of her only a single vessel containing vinegar. She took one earring off, and dropped the pearl in the vinegar, and when it was wasted away, swallowed it," Roman naturalist and philosopher Pliny the Elder (23 - 79 A.D.) wrote in his Natural History.
Indeed, the pearl was not just any pearl. Pliny called it "the largest in the whole of history," a "remarkable and truly unique work of nature" worth 10 million sesterces.
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