In Hesiod’s Theogony, Hephaestus was ordered to mold Pandora from earth. Zeus instructed the smith god to create the first woman as part of a punishment directed at Prometheus and humanity.
The poem describes Hephaestus shaping Pandora’s body from earth. Other gods then contributed qualities or adornments: Athena taught her crafts, Aphrodite gave her grace, and Hermes supplied a deceptive or persuasive character. The details differ somewhat from Hesiod’s later account in Works and Days.
A common mix-up is crediting Prometheus with creating Pandora. Prometheus shaped or helped humanity in other mythic traditions, but Hesiod assigns Pandora’s physical creation to Hephaestus. Pandora’s name means “all-gifted” or “all-giving,” reflecting the gifts supplied by the gods.
The story is one of Hesiod’s explanations for why suffering entered human life. It is also an early example of a myth in which divine craftsmanship creates a human figure with a predetermined social and cosmic role.