In Hesiod’s account connected with Pandora, Prometheus was punished by Zeus for stealing fire for humans.
Prometheus is portrayed as a Titan who favored humanity. In the myth, he took fire from the gods and gave it to mortals, allowing them to cook, work, and develop crafts. Zeus responded by ordering a severe punishment: Prometheus was bound, and an eagle repeatedly consumed his liver, which grew back.
Hesiod presents Pandora as part of Zeus’s retaliation against humanity after the theft of fire. The gods fashioned Pandora and sent her to Epimetheus, Prometheus’s brother. This links two separate mythic episodes: the punishment of Prometheus and the opening of the container carried by Pandora.
Modern retellings often call the container a box, but ancient Greek texts describe a pithos, a large storage jar. The fire theft and Pandora’s arrival are also sometimes merged into one scene, although they are distinct events in the broader mythic narrative.