01 · The stories
Myths & defining acts
Steals fire (Hesiod, Works and Days 42–105); is bound to the rock (Aeschylus, Prometheus Bound).
02 · Sacred lineage
Family & relations
In Hesiod, Prometheus, 'full of various wiles', is a son of Iapetus and Clymene and the brother of Atlas, Menoetius and Epimetheus (Theogony 507–514).
Greek literary genealogies and Roman cult identities are not interchangeable. Explore the family tree and its traditions.
03 · Places of devotion
Abode & sacred sites
In Aeschylus's Prometheus Bound, he is bound to a rock in the Scythian land (opening scene).
04 · Two traditions
Greek & Roman perspectives
The Greek perspective
In Hesiod's Works and Days, Prometheus's theft of fire is followed by Pandora's gift of a jar of evils (42–105). In Aeschylus's Prometheus Bound, Prometheus is fastened to the rock by Power and Force with Hephaestus.
The Roman perspective
The sources cited here are Greek; no separate Roman cult is described.
05 · Extensive analysis
A closer reading
Hesiod's Prometheus is a trickster whose theft of fire leads to Pandora; Aeschylus's Prometheus is a bound benefactor of humankind who defies Zeus.
06 · Primary sources
What the sources say
These are the main ancient passages behind this entry, with what each one actually says.
- Hesiod, Theogony lines 507–514
Clymene bears Iapetus's sons Atlas, Menoetius, clever Prometheus and Epimetheus.
Read the passage
07 · Story & deeper insight
Prometheus, fire and the price of foresight
Prometheus steals fire after Zeus withholds it from humanity. The gift makes human life more resourceful, but punishment follows. In Hesiod, Pandora enters the story as a counter-gift whose consequences help explain the burdens of mortal existence. The surviving tragedy Prometheus Bound instead foregrounds the benefactor's suffering and his role in giving humans arts and knowledge.
These accounts should not be blended into one uniform portrait. Hesiod's narrative emphasises the consequences of challenging divine authority; the tragedy gives the punished figure a powerful voice against Zeus's rule. The same intervention can appear as dangerous trickery or as resistance on humanity's behalf.
Prometheus is not a standard Roman counterpart under a different Latin name. His story remains compelling because progress is inseparable from conflict over who controls it. Fire represents practical capability, while the punishment asks whether a ruling power may legitimately deny that capability to others.