Pradier's original bronze of Pandora was completed in 1846, and was sent by the sculptor to the Salon of 1850 as one of his most important exhibits. Both the large version and the reduction of the Pandora were sold after Pradier's death in his studio sale. The latter was sold with rights of reproduction, probably to the founder Labroue, who edited it in 1856.
Pandora was a popular subject during the 19th century, both as an excuse to portray the height of feminine beauty, but also because of her fatale nature. Sent by Zeus to punish mankind, Pandora dazzled the mortals with her unearthly beauty, but simultaneously brought evil into the world in her precious urn. Pradier has shown Pandora as a demure classicizing maiden, though her duplicity is hinted at by the contrast of the draped and undraped sides of her body. The present cast is an exquisitely chased example, in which the founder has captured the preciousness Pradier wished to instill in his small scale oeuvre.