Roy Saunders loves a cuppa - but not from his 66-year-old tin. He has kept the same can of Sainsbury's ground coffee since inheriting it more than 20 years ago.

The slightly rusty tin has survived, along with its contents, since 1937.

Mr Saunders, of Kingsway, Hove, was given the tin by a relative of someone who had died in a flat in Hove.

He said: "It was among a few items in the larder which were quite old. The relative was clearing out the flat and I though the coffee was an item of interest."

Sainsbury's opened its first supermarket in London in 1869. A store was opened at 66 Western Road, Hove, in 1903, followed by another in London Road, Brighton, in 1905.

The coffee was more than likely bought from the Western Road store.

When Mr Saunders, 75, and his wife decided to move from Shoreham to Hove last year, they had a big clear-out and decided the tin would have to go.

He said: "The top is a little bit rusty but it's still got a paper lining inside and the coffee isn't mouldy."

It is about 8in high and contains about 1lb of coffee.

The date on the label of 1937 has disappeared but there are still instructions on how to use the contents.

Mr Saunders, who drove buses in Brighton and Hove for 15 years until he retired, is selling the tin, with a starting price of £10.

He said: "The coffee appears to be okay. I haven't drunk any so I can't tell what it tastes like or if it's okay to drink. I must say I usually stick to instant coffee."

Sainsbury's runs an educational archive about its history and the history of retail.

Archivist David Stevens said: "This is very exciting. We have one other coffee, which is pre-First World War in a glass jar, but we certainly would like to have Mr Saunders' tin."

Mr Stevens said at the time the coffee was purchased it was a speciality drink, with tea the nation's preferred option.

Mr Saunders' tin would have cost about two shillings at the time.

Mr Stevens said he would be contacting Mr Saunders to request the coffee for the archive.