diff --git a/internal/task/file_tasks.go b/internal/task/file_tasks.go
index b12202f07..53a776674 100644
--- a/internal/task/file_tasks.go
+++ b/internal/task/file_tasks.go
@@ -48,7 +48,7 @@ func newFileDigestCatalogerTask(selection file.Selection, hashers []crypto.Hash,
 		result, err := filedigest.NewCataloger(hashers).Catalog(ctx, resolver, coordinates...)
 
 		accessor.WriteToSBOM(func(sbom *sbom.SBOM) {
-			sbom.Artifacts.FileDigests = result
+			mergeInto(&sbom.Artifacts.FileDigests, result)
 		})
 
 		return err
@@ -79,7 +79,7 @@ func newFileMetadataCatalogerTask(selection file.Selection, tags ...string) Task
 		result, err := filemetadata.NewCataloger().Catalog(ctx, resolver, coordinates...)
 
 		accessor.WriteToSBOM(func(sbom *sbom.SBOM) {
-			sbom.Artifacts.FileMetadata = result
+			mergeInto(&sbom.Artifacts.FileMetadata, result)
 		})
 
 		return err
@@ -105,7 +105,7 @@ func newFileContentCatalogerTask(cfg filecontent.Config, tags ...string) Task {
 		result, err := filecontent.NewCataloger(cfg).Catalog(ctx, resolver)
 
 		accessor.WriteToSBOM(func(sbom *sbom.SBOM) {
-			sbom.Artifacts.FileContents = result
+			mergeInto(&sbom.Artifacts.FileContents, result)
 		})
 
 		return err
@@ -131,7 +131,7 @@ func newExecutableCatalogerTask(selection file.Selection, cfg executable.Config,
 		result, err := executable.NewCataloger(cfg).CatalogCtx(ctx, resolver)
 
 		accessor.WriteToSBOM(func(sbom *sbom.SBOM) {
-			sbom.Artifacts.Executables = result
+			mergeInto(&sbom.Artifacts.Executables, result)
 		})
 
 		return err
diff --git a/syft/archive_cataloger_test.go b/syft/archive_cataloger_test.go
index 129ada767..21dbba0e9 100644
--- a/syft/archive_cataloger_test.go
+++ b/syft/archive_cataloger_test.go
@@ -360,6 +360,27 @@ func TestArchiveCataloger_jarReachedThroughALinkIsIdentified(t *testing.T) {
 	assert.Contains(t, s.Artifacts.FileMetadata, manifest)
 }
 
+func TestArchiveCataloger_defaultFileSelectionCoversRootJars(t *testing.T) {
+	// with the default owned-by-package selection, a jar at the root is described by the archive task,
+	// so the root file catalogers must run after it or the jar gets no file entries at all
+	dir := t.TempDir()
+	require.NoError(t, os.WriteFile(filepath.Join(dir, "app.jar"), jarBytes(t, "app", "1.0"), 0o644))
+
+	for name, depth := range map[string]int{"feature off": 0, "feature on": 1} {
+		t.Run(name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			cfg := DefaultCreateSBOMConfig().
+				WithCatalogerSelection(cataloging.NewSelectionRequest().WithDefaults("java")).
+				WithArchiveConfig(cataloging.DefaultArchiveSearchConfig().WithMaxDepth(depth))
+			s := scanDirWithExclusions(t, dir, cfg)
+
+			require.Equal(t, []string{"|app.jar"}, packageLocations(s, "app"))
+			jar := file.Coordinates{RealPath: "app.jar"}
+			assert.Contains(t, s.Artifacts.FileMetadata, jar)
+			assert.Contains(t, s.Artifacts.FileDigests, jar)
+		})
+	}
+}
+
 func TestArchiveCataloger_descriptorRecordsArchiveConfig(t *testing.T) {
 	// a consumer must be able to tell from the SBOM alone how deep archive contents were searched
 	cfg := DefaultCreateSBOMConfig().
diff --git a/syft/create_sbom_config.go b/syft/create_sbom_config.go
index 423a5973e..e872fbd6d 100644
--- a/syft/create_sbom_config.go
+++ b/syft/create_sbom_config.go
@@ -211,19 +211,23 @@ func (c *CreateSBOMConfig) makeTaskGroups(src source.Description, exclusions []s
 		return nil, nil, err
 	}
 
-	// combine the user-provided and configured tasks
-	if c.Files.Selection == file.FilesOwnedByPackageSelection {
-		// special case: we need the package info when we are cataloging files owned by packages
-		taskGroups = append(taskGroups, pkgTasks, fileTasks)
-	} else {
-		taskGroups = append(taskGroups, append(pkgTasks, fileTasks...))
-	}
-
 	// the same package and file catalogers run against the contents of every archive, after the scan
 	// root and before relationship and unknowns post-processing
 	archiveTask := task.NewArchiveCatalogerTask(c.Archive, append(slices.Clone(pkgTasks), fileTasks...), exclusions)
-	if archiveTask != nil {
-		taskGroups = append(taskGroups, []task.Task{archiveTask})
+
+	// combine the user-provided and configured tasks
+	switch {
+	case c.Files.Selection == file.FilesOwnedByPackageSelection && archiveTask != nil:
+		// the archive task describes archives at the root too (java leaves them to it), so the root file
+		// catalogers must run after it to see those packages
+		taskGroups = append(taskGroups, pkgTasks, []task.Task{archiveTask}, fileTasks)
+	case c.Files.Selection == file.FilesOwnedByPackageSelection:
+		// special case: we need the package info when we are cataloging files owned by packages
+		taskGroups = append(taskGroups, pkgTasks, fileTasks)
+	case archiveTask != nil:
+		taskGroups = append(taskGroups, append(pkgTasks, fileTasks...), []task.Task{archiveTask})
+	default:
+		taskGroups = append(taskGroups, append(pkgTasks, fileTasks...))
 	}
 
 	// all scope work must be done after all nodes (files and packages) have been cataloged and before the relationship