Prometheus and the Theft of Fire

Prometheus was a Titan, a race of gods, who was known for his brilliance. Zeus was reportedly angry when mankind offered him animal bones wrapped in fat rather than meat. Zeus withheld fire from them as a punishment. Prometheus rejected Zeus' command and returned fire to humanity by hiding it in a gigantic fennel stalk. As a result, he facilitated human progress and civilization. Zeus, on the other hand, was enraged when he knew about the robbery. He tied Prometheus to a rock and cursed him with a daily torment of an eagle, Zeus's emblem, pecking at his liver. Every night, his liver would recover, only to be eaten the next day, locking him in an endless and agonizing cycle. Fortunately for him, after many years, the hero Hercules killed the eagle with one of his arrows while passing by one day during his famous labors.

In Athens, Prometheus was worshipped notably by potters (who, of course, required fire in their kilns), and an annual torch race was organized in his honor. Prometheus first appears in Greek art in a 7th century BCE ivory from Sparta, and on Greek pottery from around 600 BCE, which is usually as a punishment figure.