In Greek mythology, Pandora was originally said to release evils when she opened the storage jar.
The story appears most fully in Hesiod’s Works and Days, composed in archaic Greece. Zeus ordered the gods to create Pandora after Prometheus gave fire to humanity. Each god contributed qualities or gifts, and Pandora was sent to Epimetheus, Prometheus’s brother.
When Pandora opened the container, destructive troubles escaped and spread among humans. Hesiod lists problems including disease, toil, and other forms of suffering. The story therefore explains why hardship exists in human life within the poem’s larger account of labor and justice.
Modern retellings often say Pandora opened a “box,” but the ancient Greek word referred to a large storage jar. The expression “Pandora’s box” became standard much later through translation and artistic tradition.