Genesis 8:6-8
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
6 At the end of forty days Noah opened the hatch of the ark that he had made, 7 [a]and he released a raven. It flew back and forth until the waters dried off from the earth. 8 Then he released a dove, to see if the waters had lessened on the earth.
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- 8:7–12 In the eleventh tablet of the Gilgamesh Epic, Utnapishtim (the equivalent of Noah) released in succession a dove, a swallow, and a raven. When the raven did not return, Utnapishtim knew it was safe to leave the ark. The first century A.D. Roman author Pliny tells of Indian sailors who release birds in order to follow them toward land.
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