Hesiod is the ancient Greek poet who first records Pandora’s creation story in surviving literature.
Hesiod tells the myth in two works: Theogony and Works and Days. Theogony briefly mentions Pandora in connection with humanity’s suffering, while Works and Days gives the fuller account of her creation, marriage to Epimetheus, and opening of the storage jar.
Hesiod probably composed these poems in the late eighth or early seventh century BCE, although exact dates remain uncertain. He is one of the earliest Greek poets whose works survive in substantial form, alongside Homer.
The story is sometimes treated as if it were a single fixed version, but ancient myths could vary. Hesiod’s poems are the key literary sources for the classical Pandora narrative, while later writers and artists added or changed details. Modern retellings often combine Hesiod’s account with later interpretations of the jar and Hope.