In which poem by Hesiod is the story of Pandora and her jar told?

Hesiod’s poem Works and Days tells the story of Pandora and her jar. The episode appears while Hesiod explains why human beings must work and endure hardship.

In the poem, Zeus orders the creation of Pandora after Prometheus steals fire for humanity. The gods give her gifts, including beauty, skill, and persuasive charm, before she is sent to Epimetheus. Her opening of the storage jar releases suffering into the world.

Hesiod also mentions Pandora in the Theogony, but that poem gives a shorter account of her creation and does not tell the jar episode in the same narrative detail. This is why Works and Days is the standard answer when the famous opening story is requested.

The poem is one of the earliest surviving Greek literary works and is usually dated to the eighth or seventh century BCE. Its themes include agriculture, justice, labor, and relations between gods and humans.