Hesiod told the Pandora story in Works and Days. This didactic poem, usually dated to the late eighth or early seventh century BCE, is one of the two major surviving works attributed to Hesiod.
Works and Days combines practical advice about farming, sailing, justice, labor, and religious observance with myths explaining the human condition. Its account of Pandora follows the story of Prometheus, who had taken fire from the gods and given it to humanity. Zeus responds by creating a beautiful but dangerous gift for mortals.
Hesiod also refers to Pandora in Theogony, though the later and fuller narrative appears in Works and Days. The poem does not use the modern English phrase “Pandora’s Box.” Instead, it describes a sealed storage vessel that Pandora opens after receiving it from the gods.
Because Hesiod’s poems are among the earliest Greek literary sources for the myth, later versions often depend on, reinterpret, or simplify his account. The spelling and translation of some names and passages can vary.