Ancient Greek

In the “Works and Days” by the ancient Greek poet Hesiod, Pandora the first woman on Earth, received various gifts from the gods and goddesses. It is common knowledge that she obtained a box from Zeus which contained all the evils of the world. She opened it and the evils were released out of the box. When she closed it, all but one remained, which is hope. ⠀ ⠀ However, it is a common misconception that Pandora’s gift was a box, but it was actually a jar. Erasmus of Rotterdam, a 16th-century Dutch philosopher, was responsible for the mistranslation. When he translated the story into Latin, he confused the Greek word “pithos” meaning jar to “pyxis” which means box. A pithos is a large jar used for storing wine or oil, it is also sometimes used as burial jar. ⠀ ⠀ Cite another misconception about Greek mythology