In Greek mythology, the original vessel commonly called Pandora’s box was a jar.
Hesiod used the Greek word pithos, which referred to a large storage jar. Such jars were used in the ancient Greek world for storing goods including grain, oil, or wine. The vessel in the myth was therefore not originally a small wooden box with a hinged lid.
The familiar “box” wording developed through later translation and retelling. Erasmus’s influential Latin rendering used a term meaning box or container, helping establish the expression that became standard in English. Artistic depictions then reinforced the box-shaped image.
This translation history explains why the popular phrase differs from the ancient description. The myth’s central action remains the same: Pandora opens the container and troubles escape into the world. “Jar” is the historically specific answer for Hesiod’s original vessel.