What did Noah’s dove bring back to the Ark as a sign of dry land?

Noah’s dove brought back an olive leaf as a sign that the Flood waters were receding.

Genesis 8:11 says the dove returned to Noah in the evening with a freshly plucked olive leaf. Noah understood this as evidence that the waters had diminished from the earth. The episode follows the earlier release of a raven and the dove’s first unsuccessful flight.

The olive leaf became one of the most recognizable symbols associated with the Noah’s Ark story. In wider culture, an olive branch commonly represents peace, reconciliation, or the end of conflict. That broader symbolism developed through later religious and artistic traditions, while the Genesis passage specifically uses the leaf as evidence that vegetation had reappeared above the receding waters.

The dove was sent out again after seven more days and did not return. Genesis then describes Noah removing the Ark’s covering and seeing that the ground was dry, although he waited for God’s instruction before leaving.