dpa
PARIS (dpa)- The Louvre in Paris has removed the name of controversial US pharmaceutical manufacturers the Sacklers from one of its wings, the museum confirmed on Thursday.
The move comes after a protest earlier this month against the Paris museum by local activists and US-based activist group PAIN.
The US activists, who blame Sackler-owned firm Purdue Pharma for having fuelled an opioid addiction epidemic in the United States, have also protested at US cultural institutions.
In March, Purdue Pharma agreed a settlement of 270 million dollars with Oklahoma state authorities, who alleged it had engaged in deceptive marketing campaigns that led consumers to believe its opioid drugs were safe for long-term use.
Purdue is facing similar lawsuits across the US.
The Louvre said that the former Sackler Wing took its name after a 1996 donation and was renamed due to a decision, taken in 2003, that rooms would only keep the names of patrons for 20 years.
However, the museum was unable to say when the names on the rooms, which display Persian and Near Eastern art, were actually changed.
News agency AFP reported on Wednesday that the Sackler name had been covered over with sticky tape.
The Louvre's website no longer referred to a Sackler Wing on Thursday, but a cached version of its English site available through the Google search engine showed the name still in use on July 13.
Art museums in London and New York announced earlier this year that they would no longer accept money from the family.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------