#15: Jim Hansson – From Kalashnikovs to Ship Wrecks: A Marine Archaeologist’s Wild Finds

Today’s guest is Jim Hansson — marine archaeologist, diver, and co-author of The Ships of Birka. In this episode, we dive deep (literally) into the world beneath the waves: underwater Viking harbors, preserved tools and textiles, how he found a fragment of what is likely a piece of a sail, and the magic of uncovering everyday life from over a thousand years ago. Jim shares wild stories from decades of diving, from finding Kalashnikovs and Santa masks to recovering 16th-century warships in the Baltic Sea.