In Greek mythology, Prometheus stole fire for humanity before Pandora’s creation. He took the fire from the gods and gave it to humans, an act that enabled technology, cooking, and civilization in later interpretations.
Zeus punished Prometheus for this theft by chaining him to a mountain, where an eagle repeatedly ate his liver. The punishment forms part of the wider mythic conflict between Zeus and the Titan who favored humans. Pandora’s creation follows as a separate punishment directed at humanity: Zeus has the gods fashion a woman whose arrival is associated with the release of suffering.
The sequence is important because it connects the two myths. Fire gives humans power and practical knowledge, while Pandora’s jar explains why human existence also includes disease, labor, and hardship. Prometheus and Pandora thus represent opposite sides of a foundational Greek story about the costs and benefits of divine gifts.