In Greek mythology, Prometheus created humans and stole fire for them before Pandora appeared. He is a Titan associated with forethought, craft, and humanity’s acquisition of fire. His actions set the mythic chain of events that leads to Pandora.
According to Hesiod, Prometheus tricked Zeus during a sacrifice and later stole fire from the gods for humans. Zeus responded by ordering the creation of Pandora as a punishment for humanity. Pandora’s arrival is therefore presented as a consequence of Prometheus’s defiance rather than as an unrelated event.
Different Greek traditions tell Prometheus’s creation of humans in different ways. Later writers and artists commonly show him forming people from clay, but Hesiod’s account emphasizes his conflict with Zeus and his role as humanity’s benefactor. The fire episode became especially influential in later literature and art.
Prometheus is often confused with Epimetheus, Pandora’s husband in Hesiod’s story. Their names contrast “forethought” and “afterthought,” an important wordplay in the myth.