History: Not much is known about Pandora and her origins, as many of her stories are contradictory and may be apocryphal. According to the Greek myths, she was the first mortal woman among the Greeks, created as revenge by the Olympian gods on the Ancient Greeks for accepting fire from Prometheus, one of the Titans. Through her children, she became ancestor of the Royal Kings of Thessaly, north of Hellas (modern Greece), and in some myths, she is worshipped as an ancestral mother goddess of the modern Greeks.

According to ancient myths, Pandora was created as punishment on mortals for accepting the gift of fire from Prometheus, one of the Titans who had helped Zeus overthrow Cronus as ruler of the Gods of Olympus. She was originally a statue created by Hephaestus, who crafted her from clay in the likeness of his wife, Aphrodite, and brought her to life as a mortal woman by Zeus, the ruler of the Olympian Gods. Several of the gods bestowed upon her gifts to develop her personality and attributes. Athena taught her needlework and weaving. Aphrodite gave her grace and compassion. Hermes gave her a voice and the ability to be deceitful, and Peitho and the Charities dressed her and gave her fine jewelry. Zeus then presented her as a potential bride to Eprimetheus, the brother of Prometheus, who ruled the ancient city-state of Phthia.

Eprimetheus eventually married Pandora, and at the wedding, the gods gave her a clay pot (described in later stories as a jar or box) which she was warned to never open. Forbidden from opening it, she refrained from opening it for several months and even resorted to burying it in a tomb to fight the temptation of opening it. Eventually, her curiosity overwhelmed her, and she finally opened it, freeing several evil spirits and demons trapped within it to terrorize mankind, introducing the ancient Greeks to fear and misfortune. Quickly closing the pot once more, Pandora just managed to trap the last demon from escaping, reportedly leaving hope left for humanity.

These events reportedly marked the end of the so-called Golden Age of Man, an era of prosperity started by the Titans, the previous generation of the Olympian gods, and the beginning of the Silver Age under Zeus's rule on Olympus. However, as humanity became evil, Zeus created a flood to cleanse the earth of the sins created by mankind. By now, however, Pandora had sired a daughter named Pyrrha, who married Deucalion, the son of Prometheus, and became the successor for the throne of Phthia. Prometheus instructed Deucalion on how to survive the flood by constructing an ark and filling it with provisions to survive the nine days Zeus's flood ravaged Phthia. Afterward, Deucalion and Pyrrha were instructed how to recreate humanity by casting rocks behind them at the Oracle of Gaea.

The veracity of some of these events, however, are a matter of debate. The flood of Deucalion is believed to have occurred around 1475 BC during the reigns of King Tuthmosis III of Egypt and King Lycaon of Arcadia and may have actually been part of the repercussions following the explosions at Thera, contributing to the legends of Atlantis. Furthermore, the flood doesn't appear to be as efficient as Zeus expected; instead of destroying mankind he seems to have destroyed an earlier civilization of Greeks to restart once more from the ashes of the previous one. When the Phoenician prince Cadmus invaded Ancient Thebes fifty years after the flood, he discovered the indigenous tribes surviving around Attica and founded Cadmeia (modern Thebes). Pandora's legend as the first mortal woman in Greek myth and several attributes of the flood may have been embellished by later Christian writers taking attributes from the Biblical story of Ziusudra (Noah) and Eve from the Garden of Eden, but this is unconfirmed. It is known that through Deucalion and Pyrrha that Pandora was ancestor of many of the Royal Families of Ancient Thessaly, including the kings Cretheus, Salmoneus, Sisyphus and the heroic Jason of the Argonauts.

The later whereabouts of Pandora are unrevealed. According to one version, she was taken back to Olympus to serve as an attendant of Hera, the Queen of the gods. However, one woman claiming to be Pandora has appeared in recent times presiding on a Pacific Island near Australia where she claimed to be exiled by Zeus. She tricked a shipwreck survivor named Dan Harper to release a monstrous entity which she needed to conquer the Earth, but Harper reflected her true image back on her and forced her to imprison the creature once more, leaving her in exile once more. Whether this was Pandora or just a random sorceress is unrevealed.

Height: 5' 2"
Weight:115 lbs.
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Blonde, later Black

Strength Level: Unrevealed. Pandora possibly possessed the normal human strength level of a woman of her size, height and build who engaged in extensive physical exercises.

Known Superhuman Powers: Pandora possesses enchanted longevity granting her youth, vitality and a long life span on par with the Olympian gods due to her mystical attributes. She reportedly has mystical powers of an unknown nature, but this is unconfirmed.

Abilities: Pandora had several skills imbued upon her by the gods. Among them, she was an accomplished seamstress on par with the goddess Athena, but the full details of these abilities have yet to be revealed. Some of them may merely be parts of her personality, such as undying curiosity among others.

Source/Comments: This bio describes Pandora as she has appeared in the Marvel and DC Universes. She has also appeared in "Hercules: The Legendary Journeys" and the Percy Jackson series.

In ancient myths (preceding later interpretations), Pandora's box was a funerary jar and the "evils" released were death, disease, famine and pestilence.

Hypothetical Biblical studies identify Pandora as a daughter -in-law of Noah and link Japeth, the son of Noah with the Titan Japet, the father-in-law of Pandora.

Clarifications: Pandora is not to be confused with:

• Pandara, member of of the Inhumans, servant of Tantalus, @ Thunderstrike #4 

• Pandora, denizen of Earth in an alternate 21st Century timeline, @ X-Men 2099 Oasis #1

• Pandora, Hyborian Age sorceress, @ Flashpoint II #5

• Pandora, female android created by Eric Thonius, @ Son of Vulcan II #2

• Pandora Destine (Imp), member of the Clan Destine, @ Marvel Comics Presents #158