In Hesiod’s Works and Days, Pandora was called a woman before Zeus sent her to humanity. Hesiod presents her as the first woman, fashioned by the gods as part of Zeus’s response to Prometheus’s theft of fire. She is not described as an Olympian goddess, despite receiving divine gifts and playing a central role in the myth.
The distinction matters because later retellings often make Pandora sound like a goddess. In the ancient story, she is a mortal woman created by divine powers and sent to Epimetheus, Prometheus’s brother. Hesiod’s wording links her arrival with the beginning of a new condition for humankind, especially the burdens of labor, illness, and suffering.
The name Pandora means “all-gifted,” because the gods collectively gave her attributes. Ancient Greek mythology contains many female figures who are goddesses or nymphs, but Pandora occupies a different narrative role. Her story is an origin myth explaining why evils exist among humans and why work is necessary.