In Genesis, what did the dove bring back to Noah after the Flood?

In Genesis, the dove brought Noah a freshly plucked olive leaf.

Genesis 8:11 says the dove returned to the Ark in the evening with an olive leaf in its beak. Noah understood this as evidence that the waters had receded from the earth. The episode follows an earlier release in which the dove returned without finding a place to rest.

The olive leaf became a widely recognized symbol of peace, hope, and the end of danger, although Genesis itself presents it primarily as practical evidence that vegetation was visible again. The text does not call it a branch, nor does it say that the dove carried a complete twig or fruit.

The bird story continues with a final release of the dove. When the dove did not return, Noah understood that the land had become sufficiently dry for life outside the Ark. Later paintings and emblems often combine the dove and olive leaf into a universal peace image.