Olive branch#Modern usage

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The olive branch, a ramus of Olea europaea, is a symbol of peace. It is generally associated with the customs of ancient Greece and ancient Rome, and is connected with supplication to divine beings and persons in power. Likewise, it is found in most cultures of the Mediterranean Basin{{cite book|title=Nature and its symbols|author=Lucia Impelluso|page=43|year=2004|publisher=Getty Publications}} and thence expanded to become a near-universal recognized peace symbol in the modern world.

In the Greco-Roman world

File:Silver tetradrachm Athens new style reverse.jpg from Athens, {{circa|200}}–150 BC]]

In Greek tradition, a hiketeria (ἱκετηρία) was an olive branch held by supplicants to show their status as such when approaching persons of power or in temples when supplicating the gods.{{cite web|url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057%3Aalphabetic+letter%3D*i%3Aentry+group%3D13%3Aentry%3Di%28keth%2Frios#|title=LSJ: A Greek-English Lexicon}}

In Greek mythology, Athena competed with Poseidon for possession of Athens. Poseidon claimed possession by thrusting his trident into the Acropolis, where a well of sea-water gushed out. Athena took possession by planting the first olive tree beside the well. The court of gods and goddesses ruled that Athena had the better right to the land because she had given it the better gift.Robert Graves, The Greek Myths, Penguin, 1960, Sect.16.c Olive wreaths were worn by brides"Olive branch". The Oxford English Dictionary, online ed., 2004. [http://dictionary.oed.com/cgi/entry/00331258?single=1&query_type=word&queryword=olive+branch&first=1&max_to_show=10] (subscription required) and awarded to olympic victors.{{cite web|url=http://www.museum.upenn.edu/new/olympics/olympicfaqs.shtml|title=Penn Museum - University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology|website=www.museum.upenn.edu}}

The olive branch was one of the attributes of Eirene{{cite web|url=http://www.theoi.com/Ouranios/HoraEirene.html|title=IRENE (Eirene) - Greek Goddess Hora of Peace (Roman Pax)|website=www.theoi.com}}[https://books.google.com/books?id=c7cNB-JaZA8C&dq=eirene+%2B%22olive+branch%22&pg=PT64 Kathleen N. Daly and Marian Rengel, Greek and Roman Mythology A to Z, New York: Chelsea House, 2009] on Roman Imperial coins.{{cite web|url=http://www.coinsofromanegypt.org/html/library/bmc_intro/html%20files/coinage_2.html#|title=Coins of Roman Egypt}} For example, the reverse of a tetradrachm of Vespasian from Alexandria, 70-71 AD, shows Eirene standing holding a branch upward in her right hand.

The Roman poet Virgil (70–19 BC) associated "the plump olive"Virgil, Georgics, 2, pp. 425 ff (trans. Fairclough) with the goddess Pax (the Roman Eirene) and he used the olive branch as a symbol of peace in his Aeneid:{{cite web|url=http://www.greatseal.com/peace/olivebranchvirgil.html|title=Aeneas Offers an Olive Branch in Virgil's Aeneid|website=www.greatseal.com}}

{{poemquote|

High on the stern Aeneas his stand,

And held a branch of olive in his hand,

While thus he spoke: "The Phrygians' arms you see,

Expelled from Troy, provoked in Italy

By Latian foes, with war unjustly made;

At first affianced, and at last betrayed.

This message bear: The Trojans and their chief

Bring holy peace, and beg the king's relief."

}}

For the Romans, there was an intimate relationship between war and peace, and Mars, the god of war, had another aspect, Mars Pacifer, Mars the bringer of Peace, who is shown on coins of the later Roman Empire bearing an olive branch.Ragnar Hedlund, "Coinage and authority in the Roman empire, c. AD 260–295", Studia Numismatica Upsaliensia, 5, University of Uppsala, 2008 Appian describes the use of the olive-branch as a gesture of peace by the enemies of the Roman general Scipio Aemilianus in the Numantine War{{cite web|url=https://www.livius.org/ap-ark/appian/appian_spain_19.html#1|title=Appian, The Spanish Wars 19 - Livius|publisher=www.livius.org}} and by Hasdrubal the Boeotarch of Carthage.Nathaniel Hooke, [https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_Qu3QAAAAMAAJ/page/n77 The Roman history: From the Building of Rome to the Ruin of the Commonwealth, London: J. Rivington, 1823]

Although peace was associated with the olive branch during the time of the Greeks, the symbolism became even stronger under the Pax Romana when envoys used olive branches as tokens of peace.Tresidder, Jack, ed. The Complete Dictionary of Symbols. San Francisco: Chronicle, 2004.

Early Christianity

Image:Rom, Domitilla-Katakomben, Steintafel mit Taube und Ölzweig.jpg, Rome]]

The olive branch appears with a dove in early Christian art. The dove derives from the simile of the Holy Spirit in the Gospels and the olive branch from classical symbolism. The early Christians, according to Winckelmann, often allegorized peace on their sepulchers by the figure of a dove bearing an olive branch in its beak.[https://books.google.com/books?id=iSWGTy2WeVsC&q=olive+branch&pg=PT472 James Elmes, A General and Bibliographical Dictionary of the Fine Arts, London]: Thomas Tegg, 1826 For example, in the Catacomb of Priscilla in Rome (2nd – 5th centuries AD) there is a depiction of three men (traditionally taken to be Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego of the Book of Daniel[http://www.santamelania.it/preg_lett/orante/orante.htm Parrochia di Santa Melania] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100929163655/http://www.santamelania.it/preg_lett/orante/orante.htm |date=2010-09-29 }}) over whom hovers a dove with a branch; and in another of the Roman catacombs there is a shallow relief sculpture showing a dove with a branch flying to a figure marked in Greek ΕΙΡΗΝΗ (Eirene, or Peace).{{cite web|url=http://www.salomoni.it/davide/theology/blog/images/catacomb_dove.png|title=David Salmoni}}

Tertullian ({{circa|160|220}}) compared Noah's dove in the Hebrew Bible, who "announced to the world the assuagement of divine wrath, when she had been sent out of the ark and returned with the olive branch". with the Holy Spirit in baptism "bringing us the peace of God, sent out from the heavens".[https://books.google.com/books?id=zkvl7ZwGQhMC&q=dove Hall, Christopher A., Worshipping with the Church Fathers, InerVarsity Press, 2009, p.32] In his 4th century Latin translation of the story of Noah, St Jerome rendered "leaf of olive" (Hebrew alé zayit) in Genesis 8:11 as "branch of olive" (Latin ramum olivae). In the 5th century, by which time a dove with an olive branch had become established as a Christian symbol of peace, St Augustine wrote in On Christian Doctrine that, "perpetual peace is indicated by the olive branch (oleae ramusculo) which the dove brought with it when it returned to the ark." However, in Jewish tradition, there is no association of the olive leaf with peace in the story of the flood.Genesis Rabbah, 33:6{{cite web|url=http://www.halakhah.com/sanhedrin/sanhedrin_108.html#PARTb|title=Babylonian Talmud: Sanhedrin 108|website=www.halakhah.com}}{{cite web|url=http://www.halakhah.com/pdf/moed/Eiruvin.pdf|title=Eruvin 18b}}

Modern usage

File:Elizabeth I of England Marcus Gheeraerts the Elder.jpg by Marcus Gheeraerts the Elder, painted between 1580 and 1585, and showing her with an olive branch in her right hand and standing on the sword of Justice.]]

An olive branch, sometimes held by a dove, was used as a peace symbol in 18th century Britain, France and America. A 1729 portrait of Louis XV by François Lemoyne portrays him offering Europe an olive branch. An A £2 note of North Carolina (1771) depicted the dove and olive with a motto meaning: "Peace restored". Georgia's $40 note of 1778 portrayed the dove and olive and a hand holding a dagger, with a motto meaning "Either war or peace, prepared for both." The olive branch appeared as a peace symbol in other 18th century prints. In January 1775, the frontispiece of the London Magazine published an engraving: "Peace descends on a cloud from the Temple of Commerce," in which the Goddess of Peace brings an olive branch to America and Britannia. A petition adopted by the American Continental Congress in July 1775 in the hope of avoiding a full-blown war with Great Britain was called the Olive Branch Petition.

File:USGreatSealGrahamLithograph.jpg

On July 4, 1776, a resolution was passed that allowed the creation of the Great Seal of the United States. On the Great Seal, there is an eagle grasping an olive branch in its right talon. The olive branch traditionally has been recognized as a symbol for peace. It was added to the seal in March 1780 by the second committee appointed by Congress to design the seal. The olive branch has thirteen olives and thirteen olive leaves to represent the thirteen original colonies. Later on, the bald eagle and bundle of thirteen arrows were added. The idea of the olive branch opposing the bundle of thirteen arrows was to "denote the power of peace & war which is exclusively vested in Congress."Charles Thomson as referred to in "The Great Seal of the United States." Washington D.C.: U.S. Department of State Bureau of Public Affairs, 2003.

The flag of Cyprus and coat of arms of Cyprus both use olive branches as symbols of peace between the communities of the country; it also appears on the flag of Eritrea. Olive branches can be found in many police patches and badges across the world to signify peace.

The emblem and flag of the United Nations bear a pair of stylized olive branches surrounding a world map.

The olive branch is a symbol of peace in Arab folk traditions.{{cite book|title=Folk traditions of the Arab world: a guide to motif classification, Volume 1|author= Hasan M. El-Shamy|publisher=Indiana University Press|year=1995|page=410}} In 1974, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat brought an olive branch to the UN General Assembly and said, "Today I have come bearing an olive branch and a freedom-fighter's gun. Do not let the olive branch fall from my hand."{{cite news|title=Mahmoud Abbas: haunted by ghost of Yasser Arafat|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/palestinianauthority/8784000/Mahmoud-Abbas-haunted-by-ghost-of-Yasser-Arafat.html | location=London | work=The Daily Telegraph|date=23 September 2011}}

Several towns have been named Olive Branch as a symbol of peaceful living, such as Olive Branch, Mississippi. Some Western given names and surnames, such as "Oliver", "Olivier"{{cite web|title=Last name: Olivier |url=http://www.surnamedb.com/Surname/Olivier |website=The Internet Surname Database |publisher=Name Origin Research |access-date=9 March 2015}} and "Olifant"{{cite web|title=Last name: Oliphant |url=http://www.surnamedb.com/Surname/Oliphant |website=The Internet Surname Database |publisher=Name Origin Research |access-date=9 March 2015}} allude to an olive branch.

Gallery

File:Greek Silver Tetradrachm of Athens (Attica).jpg|Greek silver tetradrachm of Athens (Attica). Goddess Athena and an owl with an olive branch. 6th century BC

File:Squat lekythos Louvre CA2516.jpg|Athena bearing an olive branch as a pattern on her shield. Ancient Greek Attic red-figure lekythos, ca. 400 BC, from Athens

Image:Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fiery furnace, from the book Die Malereien der Katakomben Roms, plate 78, levels adjusted.jpg|Wall painting from the early Christian Catacomb of Priscilla in Rome, 3rd/4th century AD, showing three figures in a fire above whom flies a dove with a branch in its beak

Image:William and Mary.jpg|William III and Mary II receive the olive branch from Peace. Painting by James Thornhill, c.1700, Old Royal Naval College, Greenwich

Image:1719 George I farthing lighter.jpg|George I farthing, 1719, showing Britannia with a sword and olive branch

Image:WWIposter12.jpg|A German war loan poster, 1917

Image:Punch_dove_and_branch.png|Cartoon from Punch, 1919. "OVERWEIGHTED. President Wilson: 'Here's your olive branch. Now get busy.' Dove of Peace: 'Of course I want to please everybody; but isn't this a bit thick?'"

Image:Gold Olive Branch Left on the Moon by Neil Armstrong - GPN-2002-000070.jpg|Golden olive branch left on the Moon by Neil Armstrong on the 1969 Apollo 11 mission as a symbol of peace.

Image:Fifty New Pence.jpg|Fifty pence of the late 20th century showing Britannia with a trident and olive branch

Image:UN emblem blue.svg|Emblem of the United Nations, with stylized olive branches