The museum is the latest cultural
institution to cut ties with the Sacklers. The Sackler name has been removed in
recent years from wings and galleries at institutions including the Louvre in
Paris and the Serpentine Gallery in London.
The British Museum said it had mutually
agreed on the move with trustees of the Raymond and Beverly Sackler Foundation,
which has supported the museum for more than 30 years.
“The British Museum is grateful for the
Foundation’s past support, and the Trustees appreciate their co-operation in
coming to this agreement as we now move the museum into a new era and present
our incredible collections in different ways for new audiences,” museum
Chairman George Osborne said in a statement.
The Sackler name has become synonymous with
Purdue Pharma, the company that developed OxyContin, a widely prescribed and
widely abused painkiller. Purdue has faced a barrage of lawsuits alleging that
it helped spark an addiction and overdose crisis linked to more than 500,000
deaths in the U.S. over the past two decades.
The museum said it is developing a new
master plan, making this is a “timely opportunity” for the change.
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