A votive offering or votive deposit is one or more objects displayed or deposited, without the intention of recovery or use, in a sacred place for religious purposes. Such items are a feature of modern and ancient societies and are generally made to gain favor with supernatural forces.
Votive paintings in the ambulatory of the Chapel of Grace, in Altötting, Bavaria, Germany
Mexican votive painting of 1911; the man survived an attack by a bull.
Part of a female face with inlaid eyes, Ancient Greek Votive offering, 4th century BC, probably by Praxias, set in a niche of a pillar in the sanctuary of Asclepios in Athens, Acropolis Museum, Athens
Bronze animal statuettes from Olympia, votive offerings, 8th–7th century BC
An ex-voto is a votive offering to a saint or a divinity, given in fulfillment of a vow or in gratitude or devotion. The term is usually restricted to Christian examples.
Mexican votive painting of 1911; the man survived an attack by a bull, attributed to the care of Our Lady of San Juan de los Lagos
La Rochelle slave ship Le saphir, ex-voto in the Saint Louis Cathedral in La Rochelle, 1741
Votive tablets to Saint Mary in Himmerod Abbey, Germany
A model ship (probably expressing thanks for help during a storm) hanging in a Söderköping church
