In the myth of Pandora, Aphrodite gave Pandora the gift of beauty.
Hesiod’s Works and Days describes Pandora as receiving a collection of qualities and skills from several gods. Aphrodite, the Greek goddess associated with love and beauty, gave her grace and desire. Other divine figures supplied different attributes, making Pandora a composite creation rather than a person formed with only one divine gift.
The story’s name for her reflects this construction: Pandora is commonly interpreted as “all-gifted” or “gifted by all.” The gifts are part of Zeus’s punishment directed at humanity after Prometheus took fire for mortals.
A common mix-up is assigning Pandora’s beauty to Athena, who is associated with wisdom and crafts. In the traditional Hesiodic account, Athena’s role concerns clothing and handicraft, while Aphrodite provides the qualities connected with attraction and desire.