Containers

What the shelf holds

On this page9

What is here The material story is good And there is no PVC The clarity story is not Which is a real gap, stated rather than worked around The opaque ones are not useless By form The sizes suit the craft References

The material is right and the clarity is not, which is the opposite of what the archetype expects.

What is here

391 rows: 146 containers and 245 closures. 81 PET, 64 PP and 1 glass, from 6 to 250 mL with a median of 118.

The material story is good

PET is polyester and PP is polypropylene, two of the three plastics named as suitable. 145 of 146 containers are a suitable material, and the remaining one is glass.

And there is no PVC

None on this shelf. Across the whole catalog there are 52 PVC items and 50 are shrink bands, sleeves and bags. The problem material is almost absent, which is unusual and worth knowing.

The clarity story is not

39 white, 35 clear, 23 black, 15 amber, 15 natural, 8 blue. The archetype note says clarity matters more than anything else and under a quarter of the shelf is clear.

Which is a real gap, stated rather than worked around

If a visible collection is the point, the choice is 35 containers rather than 146. That is still a usable number and it is a quarter of what the note implies.

The opaque ones are not useless

Light drives surface change on some metals and fades some inks. For storage rather than display, the 23 black and 15 amber containers are doing conservation work that a clear jar cannot.

By form

75 PET single wall jars, 22 double wall round base jars, 20 PP single wall jars, 13 double wall straight base jars, 4 PP round tubs, 2 PET oval jars and 2 PET jar sets.

The sizes suit the craft

6 to 250 mL. Small enough that a jar of coins can be lifted, and small enough that a desiccant pouch dries the volume quickly.

References

The Davis Pack Supply catalog, measured 18 October 2026. The numismatic and philatelic shelf is 391 rows: 146 containers and 245 closures. 81 PET, 64 PP and 1 glass, from 6 to 250 mL with a median of 118. Zero PVC. By colour 39 white, 35 clear, 23 black, 15 amber, 15 natural and 8 blue. Necks 70-400 at 113, 89-400 at 93 and 58-400 at 66.

Library of Congress, Care, Handling and Storage of Photographs: "Suitable plastic enclosures are made of uncoated polyester, polyethylene, and polypropylene." On standards: "To be considered photo-safe, storage materials must pass the physical and chemical requirements outlined in ISO 18902 including passing the Photographic Activity Test (PAT)." And on humidity: "Photographic emulsions may stick to plastic enclosures if they are exposed to high RH, especially above 70% RH." loc.gov

Written from Library of Congress and NARA preservation guidance and from National Park Service Conserve O Gram material, and from the catalog as it stood on 18 October 2026. Conservation advice for a specific object is a job for a conservator; nothing here is a substitute for one, and a valuable or unusual item deserves that conversation rather than a jar.