After years of market calm, volatility is back, but investors’ faith in bonds has been “shaken” by years of low interest rates, according to a recent Bloomberg article.

But the article advises not to “assume that bonds’ muted outlook will hamper their ability to hold up during market downturns. In fact,” it adds, “during the 20 bear markets since 1928…the average return from long-term government bonds was 5 percent, and the median return was 3.2 percent.”

Investors should take history into account when “looking for shelter,” the article says, “as well as that of other perceived safe havens” (it cites the “so-called London gold pool” as an example).

The article concludes: “None of this means investors should dump their stocks—all-in-all-out market timing moves are doomed to fail. But there’s a good reason 40 percent of the classic 60/40 portfolio is reserved for bonds. And there’s no better time to be reminded.”