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An earlier British jar is known as the Kilner jar. Mason jars are made of glass, and come in a variety of sizes including quart, pint, half-gallon, and cup sizes, as well as in wide-mouth and regular mouth shapes. Modern glass Mason jars are sealed with a flat metal lid, held on either by a vacuum seal (created during canning), or by a metal band that screws onto the neck of the jar. The lids are sold separately so that the jars and bands can be reused.
UseIn home canning, the food is packed into the jar and the flat lid is placed on top. The band is screwed loosely over the lid. The jar is heat sterilized in boiling water, often using a canner. While historically the band was then kept on the jar to support the lid, practice now is to remove the band - if the contents are sterile, internal negative pressure will keep the lid on the jar. A "popped up" lid is a sign of microbial growth, including potential botulism.
HistoryThe earliest glass jars were called wax sealers because they used sealing wax, which was poured into a channel around the lip which held on a tin lid. This process was complicated and error-prone, but was largely the only one available for a long time, and widely used even into the early 1900s. By far, though, the most popular form of seal was the screw-on zinc cap, the precursor to today's screw-on lids. The earliest successful application of this was discovered by Mason and patented on November 30, 1858, a date embossed on thousands of jars. Jars with "Patent Nov 30th 1858" were made in many shapes, sizes and colors well into the 1900s. Since they were made in such quantity and used for such long periods, many of them have survived to the present day. Another popular closure was known as the lightning closure, named after the first jar to use it, which was embossed with "Lightning" on the side. More commonly, this is often known as a bail closure, or French Kilner - it consists of a metal wire that leverages a glass lid down when pressed against the side of the jar. While these jars are still sold for storage, they are now rarely used for canning. The heyday for jars was probably 1860-1900, when an explosion of patents for various closures were issued, ranging from the effective to the absurd. The more absurd closures were quickly abandoned and often fetch high prices in today's market.
CollectingMason jars are eagerly sought after by collectors. There is a section on eBay devoted to the sale of antique fruit jars, some of which have sold for as high as $30,000.
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