page_title: Olive branch
section_title: Modern usage
hierarchical_section_title: Olive branch / Modern usage
caption_attribution_description: A lithograph of the Great Seal of the United States, made by Andrew B. Graham of Washington D.C. probably in the 1890s, soon after the seal had been greatly redesigned in 1885. This version hung for many years in the office of the keeper of the Great Seal. Graham had once been an employee in the U.S. Coast &amp; Geodetic Survey, but worked as a lithographer from 1888 on.
context_page_description: The olive branch is a symbol of peace or victory allegedly deriving from the customs of ancient Greece, particularly regarding supplication to both the gods and persons in power and is found in most cultures of the Mediterranean basin. It became associated with peace in modern Europe and is also used in the Arab world. Despite claims of Ancient Greek origins, the symbol first appears in Ancient Egypt as a symbol of peace many centuries before appearing in ancient Greek mythology.
context_section_description: An olive branch held by a dove was used as a peace symbol in 18th century Britain and America.  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.
  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."
  The flag of Cyprus and coat of arms of Cyprus both use olive branches as symbols of peace and reflections of the country's ancient Greek heritage; 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.
caption: The 1885 obverse design of the Great Seal of the United States
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