In Hesiod’s Greek myth of Pandora, she opens a jar rather than a box.
The Greek word used in the ancient account is pithos, a large storage jar typically associated with food, liquids, or other supplies. Hesiod’s Works and Days describes Pandora opening this container and releasing the many hardships that affect human life.
The “box” in the English expression comes from a long-standing translation tradition. The Renaissance humanist Erasmus rendered pithos as pyxis, a smaller box or casket, helping establish the phrase “Pandora’s box” in European languages.
This distinction matters because the ancient source does not present the object as a small hinged box. Modern paintings, books, games, and films often use a box because it is visually familiar, but “jar” is the answer closest to Hesiod’s wording. The myth’s central idea remains the same: opening a sealed container changes the human condition.