THE Romans were still racing around in chariots.

Their emperor, Augustus, had just appointed Tiberius as his successor.

And Sainsbury's had just made some fine pork sausages for its customers.

At least that is what banger fan Chris Allanson, 50, had to assume when he looked at the wrapping on the pack he had brought home from his local supermarket.

The eight extra lean sausages carried a use-by date of May 13 AD.

Chris, a surveyor, checked a second packet he had already put in his fridge at home in Finches Gardens, Lindfield, and found that too carried the curious dateline.

He weighed up the pros and cons of eating sausages 1,986 years out of date and decided to go ahead, with no ill-effects.

He said: "It looked so odd on the packet. I don't know what this code means. I have never seen anything like it before.

"I was putting them away after I got home from the shops when I noticed it.

"When I cooked the sausages and ate them they tasted fine. I haven't reported it - I just think it's a bit of fun."

Chris and his partner Blanche bought the sausages at the Haywards Heath branch of Sainsbury's.

When the Argus rang to grill the superstore about the bangers, it had already heard about the howler.

Spokesman Jason Steinberg said: "It was a labelling error by staff and we have put it right.

"It's a quirky thing to happen, but they are very isolated incidents."

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