Which ancient Greek poem describes Pandora as the first woman?
Answer
Works and Days
Answer
Works and Days
Works and Days describes Pandora as the first woman.
Hesiod’s Works and Days presents Pandora’s creation after Prometheus steals fire for humanity. Zeus commands the gods to make her, and the poem describes her arrival as part of the divine punishment that brings suffering and difficult labor into human life. This is the source most often used for the detailed Pandora narrative.
The Iliad and The Odyssey are Homeric epics and do not provide this same full creation story. The poem is not only a myth collection: it also discusses farming, justice, work, seafaring, and proper conduct. Pandora appears within that broader explanation of why human life contains hardship.
Source: Wikipedia · fact-checked Sept. 2026