In Hesiod’s Pandora story, Hermes placed a deceptive character in Pandora’s mind.
Works and Days presents Pandora as a divine creation assembled with contributions from multiple gods. Hermes, the messenger of the gods, is associated in this passage with giving her a deceptive nature and a mind suited to trickery. The detail helps explain why Pandora is not simply portrayed as an innocent human discovering an unfamiliar container.
The myth’s earliest surviving literary versions frame Pandora’s creation as part of Zeus’s punishment of humanity after Prometheus took fire. The gods’ gifts therefore have an intentionally double meaning: Pandora is beautiful and capable, but also connected with danger and deception.
Readers sometimes assume that Hermes merely delivered Pandora to Epimetheus. Hesiod’s account gives him a more active role in shaping her character, while other gods provide her clothing, adornment, craft ability, and charm.