In Greek mythology, who made Pandora’s human form from earth?

In Greek mythology, Hephaestus made Pandora’s human form from earth.

Hesiod’s Theogony describes Zeus ordering Hephaestus, the divine smith, to create a woman from earth. Hephaestus shaped her as part of Zeus’s plan to punish Prometheus and humanity after the theft of fire. The creation is therefore presented as an intentional divine project rather than a spontaneous birth.

Other gods then contributed qualities or skills. Athena taught Pandora handicraft, Aphrodite gave her beauty, and Hermes supplied deceptive or misleading speech in Hesiod’s account. These separate contributions explain why Pandora’s creation is sometimes compared with the assembly of a composite divine gift.

Hephaestus is often confused with Prometheus because both figures are linked to fire and craftsmanship. Prometheus stole fire for humans, whereas Hephaestus was the Olympian smith who fashioned Pandora under Zeus’s command. The two figures play opposite roles in the myth’s central conflict.