Barcelona - A Spanish pub owner has been handed the unprecedented sentence of five and half years in prison for the loud music played in her establishment, a Barcelona court said in a verdict which was made public on Monday.

The music was played at more than 43 decibels, far surpassing the legal limit, until 3 am in 2005 and 2006, the court said.

Such behaviour was deemed to have "seriously damaged" the health of three people living in the same block of flats, who had to undergo psychiatric treatment and take tranquillizers.

The pub owner ignored initial orders to lower the noise level and later orders to close the establishment, which was located in a Barcelona central neighbourhood.

Media reports described the sentence as the highest handed out over noise in Spain, one of the world's noisiest countries, where anti-noise activists campaign against noise from commercial establishments or airports. (dpa)