In Hesiod’s account, Zeus ordered the gods to create Pandora.
The command follows Prometheus’s theft of fire for humanity. Zeus, ruler of the Olympian gods, plans a punishment that will affect both Prometheus and mortals. He instructs Hephaestus to make Pandora from earth, while other gods give her qualities, skills, or adornments.
Pandora’s name is commonly interpreted as “all-gifted” or “all-giving,” reflecting the gifts bestowed on her by the gods. Hesiod’s presentation is shaped by ancient Greek ideas about gender, labor, marriage, and divine retribution, so it differs sharply from many modern retellings that portray Pandora primarily as a curious heroine.
Zeus is sometimes omitted from simplified versions, which focus only on the opening of the container. In the original mythic framework, however, the event is part of Zeus’s deliberate response to Prometheus. That makes Zeus the specific divine authority behind Pandora’s creation.