Question

meaning of "Do cream and mantle like a standing pond"

Answer 1

It means the dead, expressionless, and still faces of the men.

Explanation:

• It is taken from the "Merchant of Venice".

• It is used as an image that their faces are as still and expressionless as a cream above milk.

• They are as dead and alive at the same time as algae in ponds.

• But then these melancholic men try to pretend wisest of all.

Answer 2

It means the dead, expressionless, and still faces of the men.