In Greek mythology, Pandora opened a pithos, a large storage jar later mistranslated as a box.
The Greek word used in Hesiod’s account is pithos. Such vessels were substantial ceramic containers used in the ancient Greek world for storing goods including grain, oil, and wine. The word does not specifically mean a small chest or a hinged box.
The familiar expression “Pandora’s box” arose through a Renaissance-era translation tradition. The Latin word pyxis, meaning a box or container, helped establish the image now dominant in European retellings. Modern illustrations therefore commonly show Pandora lifting a lid from a small box, even though Hesiod’s original image was a large jar.
This distinction matters because the jar emphasizes a household storage vessel rather than a magical treasure chest. The myth’s central consequence remains the release of troubles into the human world, with hope left inside.