In Greek mythology, the woman whose opening of a container released troubles into the world is Pandora.
Hesiod presents Pandora as the first woman, created by the gods after Prometheus gave fire to humanity. Zeus ordered her creation as part of a punishment directed at Prometheus and humans. Different gods supplied her with qualities or gifts, which helps explain her name, commonly interpreted as “all-gifted.”
The familiar English phrase says Pandora opened a box, but Hesiod’s Greek text describes a large storage jar, or pithos. The “box” wording became standard through later translation and artistic tradition. Pandora herself is not simply a villain: the myth explores divine punishment, human curiosity, and the difficult conditions of mortal life.
The story is told most fully in Hesiod’s Works and Days, with a shorter related account in the Theogony. It is distinct from the myth of Eve, although both figures have sometimes been compared in later commentary.