# Bow Fibula

- By: Ancient Greek
- Date: Geometric Period (800–600 BCE)
- Medium: Bronze
- Classification: Costume and Accessories
- Dimensions: 5 × 8.8 × 0.7 cm (2 × 3 1/2 × 1/4 in.)
- Culture: Greece
- Credit line: Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Walter Alexander
- Museum: [Art Institute of Chicago](https://www.artic.edu/artworks/196467)
- Rights: [Public domain (CC0)](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)
- Picture: https://www.artic.edu/iiif/2/7d79aced-8378-c356-ac82-89bd2255445c/full/!1920,1080/0/default.jpg
- Who can see it: Tweens profiles and older (museums give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the museum's own words)

This precious bronze object is a votive, or devotional gift, made as an offering to the gods. They come in many forms, such as animals, beads and brooches. Many seem once to have been attached to something else. Votives were hung from sacred trees or placed in sanctuaries around Greece. Once a shrine was full, the votives were ceremonially buried to make room for more offerings.

Description © Art Institute of Chicago, CC BY 4.0