Packaging container and holder used therein

An article holder to hold a longitudinal end portion of a cylindrical article contained in a packaging container, the article holder comprising:

• an upper face and a lower face facing up and down, respectively, when the article holder is disposed inside the packaging container;
• an inner face and an outer face facing a center side and an outer side, respectively, in a longitudinal direction of the cylindrical article when the article holder is disposed inside the packaging container;
• at least one first article receiver formed in the upper face of the article holder to support a lower side of an end portion of the cylindrical article, the first article receiver including,
• a first recess semilunar in vertical cross section, forming a semilunar opening in the inner face of the article holder and a rectangular opening in the upper face of the article holder, the rectangular opening continuous with the semilunar opening, and
• a first arc-shaped projection projecting from an inner circumferential surface of the first recess, having a radius (r2) smaller than a radius (r1) of the first recess, and
• at least one second article receiver formed in the lower face of the article holder to support an upper side of the end portion of the cylindrical article.