In Greek mythology, Zeus ordered Pandora’s creation and sent her to humanity. Hesiod presents Zeus as the divine ruler who devised this punishment after Prometheus gave fire to humans.
The story appears in Hesiod’s Theogony and Works and Days. Zeus instructed Hephaestus to make Pandora from earth, while other gods gave her qualities and gifts. Hermes then brought her to Epimetheus, Prometheus’s brother, despite Prometheus’s warning not to accept gifts from Zeus.
The myth is closely tied to the conflict between Zeus and Prometheus. In Hesiod’s account, fire allows humans to live more independently, while Pandora introduces a different kind of hardship into human life. The later expression “Pandora’s box” compresses several details from the ancient story.
A common mix-up is assigning Pandora’s creation to Prometheus. Prometheus helped humanity and was punished by Zeus; Zeus is the figure who commands the creation and dispatch of Pandora.