In ancient Greek mythology, the first woman created by the gods was called Pandora. Hesiod presents her as a divinely fashioned woman sent to humanity after Prometheus’s theft of fire.
The creation story appears in Works and Days and is also referenced in the Theogony. Zeus orders Hephaestus to make her from earth, and the gods add different gifts or qualities. Pandora’s name reflects this collective giving and is usually translated as “all-gifted.”
The myth is often summarized as a story about curiosity, but Hesiod’s account has a broader purpose. It connects Pandora’s arrival with the origin or spread of human toil, disease, and other troubles. The familiar container is important, but Pandora herself is the central figure in the divine plan.
Pandora should not be confused with Helen, whose myth concerns the Trojan War, or with later fictional characters named Pandora. In the ancient Greek narrative, she is specifically the first woman made by the gods and the person associated with the opened jar.