Pandora
The first mortal woman, created by the gods as a beautiful punishment for mankind. When she opened her jar, all the evils of the world escaped — leaving only Hope inside.
The Legend of Pandora
After Prometheus stole fire from Olympus and gave it to mortals, Zeus devised the ultimate punishment: Pandora, the first woman. Hephaestus shaped her from clay; Athena dressed her and taught her craft; Aphrodite gave her beauty; Hermes gave her speech, cunning, and a deceptive heart. Zeus sent her to Epimetheus, Prometheus's brother, with a sealed jar. Despite Prometheus's warning never to accept gifts from the gods, Epimetheus married her. Pandora opened the jar, releasing disease, toil, and sorrow. Only Hope remained inside. Her myth explains human suffering as the consequence of the conflict between Prometheus and Zeus.
Parents
Created by the gods
Children
Pyrrha
Symbols
Fun Fact
The famous phrase "Pandora's box" is actually a mistranslation — the original Greek says pithos (jar), not pyxis (box). The error comes from Erasmus in the 16th century.
Words We Inherited
English words and phrases that trace back to this myth. See our full guide to English words from Greek mythology.
Explore Further
Creation of Pandora
💭 conceptNarrative
The crafting of the first woman by the gods as a punishment for humanity after Prometheus's theft of fire
Pandora's Box
💭 conceptThe jar that released all evils
Pandora's Box (properly a jar, pithos) was the container given to the first woman, Pandora, which when opened released all evils into the world — with only Hope remaining inside.
Pandora's Jar
💭 conceptevil, hope
The vessel (originally a large storage jar, not a box) given to Pandora that released all evils into the world but trapped Hope at the bottom.
Laodamia
🗡 herodevotion
Wife of Protesilaus who embraced a wax image of her dead husband so desperately the gods briefly returned him to life.
Alcmene
🗡 heroMother of Heracles
Alcmene was the mortal woman whom Zeus seduced by disguising himself as her husband — she bore Heracles, the greatest hero of Greek mythology.
Ixion
🗡 heroFirst murderer and first sinner
Ixion was the first human to murder a kinsman and the first to attempt seduction of a goddess — bound forever to a spinning wheel of fire.
Pyrrha
🗡 herosurvival
Wife of Deucalion and daughter of Epimetheus who survived the great flood and helped repopulate the earth by throwing stones.
Prometheus
🗡 heroBringer of fire and champion of humanity
Prometheus stole fire from the gods and gave it to humanity, for which Zeus chained him to a rock where an eagle devoured his liver daily — the archetypal rebel against divine authority.
Paris
🗡 heroPrince who caused the Trojan War
Paris was the Trojan prince whose judgement of three goddesses and abduction of Helen ignited the Trojan War — the most consequential act of desire in Western mythology.
Hecuba
🗡 heroQueen of Troy
Hecuba was the queen of Troy who watched her husband, sons, and city destroyed — embodying the total devastation that war inflicts on women.
Pasiphaë
🗡 heroQueen of Crete, mother of the Minotaur
Pasiphaë was the queen of Crete whom Poseidon cursed with an unnatural desire for a bull — the mother of the Minotaur and a sorceress in her own right.
Phaedra
🗡 heroQueen consumed by forbidden love
Phaedra was the wife of Theseus who was cursed by Aphrodite to fall hopelessly in love with her stepson Hippolytus — her suicide and false accusation destroyed him.