In Hesiod’s Works and Days, the last thing to remain inside Pandora’s jar was hope.
Hesiod says that Pandora lifted the lid of a storage jar, releasing troubles into the world. Once she closed it again, only elpis remained inside. Elpis is commonly translated as “hope,” although the Greek word can have a broader sense involving expectation or anticipation.
The familiar phrase “Pandora’s box” is based on a later translation mistake. Hesiod’s original account refers to a pithos, a large earthenware jar, not a small box. The jar detail matters because it shows how the modern expression developed from the ancient story rather than reproducing it exactly.
The myth does not simply state that hope escaped into the world. In Hesiod’s wording, hope remains within the jar, which has led to different interpretations of whether this is comforting, restrictive, or deliberately ambiguous.