In Greek mythology, Pandora opens a storage jar in Hesiod’s original account.
The Greek word used by Hesiod is pithos, a large container commonly used for storing materials such as grain, oil, or wine. It is not the small hinged box imagined in most modern illustrations. The English phrase “Pandora’s box” developed later through translation and interpretation.
When Pandora opens the vessel, troubles escape into the human world. Hope remains inside, although the exact meaning of its presence has been debated since antiquity. Hesiod’s account does not present the scene with the familiar modern mechanics of a box lid being lifted.
The distinction between jar and box is one of the most important differences between the ancient source and the later expression. “Pandora’s box” is now firmly established in English, but “storage jar” is the more precise description of Hesiod’s object.