referring now to fig1 the container support device comprising the invention is depicted showing its relationship to a first upper rung and a second lower rung of a typical ladder , when installed thereon . similarly , the support device is illustrated as mounted on a ladder in fig6 and in side view in fig7 . more particularly , the support device includes first and second downwardly extending elongate members 10 and 12 . a spacer 14 extends between and rigidly supports downwardly extending elongate members 10 and 12 in a fixed relationship to each other . each of the downardly extending elongate members 10 and 12 includes a downwardly facing notch , illustrated with reference to elongate member 10 at reference numeral 16 . positioning the container support device so an upper rung 18 of the ladder is within the notches 16 in the elongate members 10 and 12 attaches the support device to the ladder . lower ends of the downwardly extending elongate members abut the front side of a second lower rung 20 of the ladder . additionally , the support device includes upwardly extending notched portions 22 and 24 . a generally curved opening 26 extends inwardly from the front edge of the spacer 14 . in use , the paint bucket is supported in the notched portions 22 and 24 such that it exerts a downward force on the support device causing downward extending elongate members 10 and 12 to tend to rotate about the upper rung 18 of the ladder until the downward extending portions contact the lower rung 20 of the ladder . by properly selecting the dimensions of the container support device , the angle of the ladder can be changed from vertical to substantially horizontal in either direction while the container remains a vertical position . that is , the ladder can be positioned at any usable angle while the paint bucket is maintained in a vertical position . in the preferred embodiment the notches 20 and 24 are positioned near the upper end of elongate members 10 and 12 and forward ( toward the user ) from the upper rung 18 of the ladder . this positions the paint bucket at a convenient location for the user . the relative position of the downward extending notches 16 to the upward extending notches 22 and 24 determines the angle through which the ladder can be changed while the lower ends of the elongate members 10 and 12 remain in contact with the lower rung 20 of the ladder . fig2 is a top view of the spacer 14 which is attached to and extends between the elongate members 10 and 12 . this figure also illustrates in top view a typical container 30 as supported by the container support device comprising the invention . more specifically , typical containers such as paint containers include around the periphery and near the upper end thereof , bail or handle attachment members 32 and 34 . the dimensions of the container support device are selected such that the container 30 fits within the curved opening 26 in the front edge of the spacer with the handle attachment devices 32 and 34 resting in the notched portions 22 and 24 . thus , as the angle of the container support device changes as a result of positional changes in the ladder to which it is attached , the container rotates in the notches 22 and 24 to maintain the container in a vertical position . by properly adjusting the positions of notches 22 and 24 with respect to the other portions of the container support device , it is practical to change the angular position of the ladder from vertical to essentially horizontal without spilling the contents ( such as paint ) from the container 30 . fig3 illustrates an adapter designed to permit the container support device to be utilized to support containers having a lesser diameter than a gallon bucket , wherein the handle attachment brackets 32 and 34 are more closely spaced than the container support notches 22 and 24 . more specifically , the adapter device illustrated in fig3 includes a ring member 36 having attached thereto first and second outwardly extending portions 38 and 40 , which are adapted to be positioned in the container support of notches 24 and 22 of the container support device . extending downwardly from the ring member 36 and attached thereto is a generally u - shaped member 42 , which is adapted to and provides support for a container positioned within the ring member 63 and supported by u - shaped member 42 . by properly selecting the dimensions of circular member 36 , containers having a diameter less than the distance between the container support notches 22 and 14 can be supported . in addition , gallon buckets having no bail ears can be supported in the invented device by using a properly sized adapter . fig4 illustrates how the container support device can be formed from a single piece of sheet metal . in manufacturing of the container support device , a sheet metal stamping 45 is first made . the sheet metal stamping 45 is then bent along dotted lines 48 and 50 . after bending , the notched portions , indicated at reference numerals 52 and 54 , extend downwardly to form the notches for supporting the device on the upper rung of the ladder . second notches 56 and 58 extend upwardly to provide the notches for supporting the container . the portion 60 generally positioned between the dotted lines 48 and 50 forms the top structure of the container support device with the container being positioned generally within the backward extending curved portion 62 . in the embodiment of the invention illustrated in fig5 the support device is made by bending a piece of wire , metal rod or similar elongated material and attaching the ends together . other techniques neither described nor illustrated may also be used to construct other embodiments within the scope of the invention .