In the Genesis flood story, Noah sent out a dove after the raven to test whether the water had receded.
Genesis 8 records that Noah first released a raven. He then sent a dove to see whether the waters had diminished from the earth. The dove found nowhere to rest and returned to the ark. After seven days, Noah sent it out again, and it came back with a freshly plucked olive leaf.
Noah waited another seven days before releasing the dove a third time. It did not return, indicating that the land was becoming habitable. This three-stage sequence makes the dove a practical messenger in the narrative as well as a symbolic figure.
The olive leaf is often described as evidence of peace, but in Genesis its immediate function is environmental: it tells Noah that plant growth has reappeared above the floodwater. The association of a dove and olive branch with peace developed through later Jewish, Christian, classical, and modern artistic traditions.