Human Saga

First recorded use of the magnetic compass for navigation

c. 1088-1117 CE·Science, technology & invention·Song China·
c. 1088-1117 CEDate
Science, technology & inventionCategory
24Empires active
Date
c. 1088-1117 CE
Category
Science, technology & invention
Region
Song China
Era
Post-Classical / Medieval
Significance

The earliest unambiguous descriptions of the magnetic compass appear in Song China.

In his Dream Pool Essays of about 1088, the polymath Shen Kuo gave the first clear account of how a steel needle could be magnetised by rubbing it with lodestone and suspended to indicate direction, noting that it pointed slightly east of true south, an early observation of magnetic declination. Around 1117 Zhu Yu's Pingzhou Table Talks recorded the first explicit use of the compass at sea, reporting that pilots steered by the stars at night and the sun by day, but in dark weather looked to the 'south-pointing needle'. The marine compass freed navigation from dependence on clear skies and visible landmarks, greatly improving the reliability of long-distance voyaging. Knowledge of the device spread westward along the Indian Ocean trade routes; by the late twelfth and thirteenth centuries the compass was in use among Arab and European mariners, becoming, alongside the astrolabe and improved charts, an essential instrument of the maritime expansion of the later medieval and early modern world.

See the world map in c. 1088-1117 CE →More science, technology & inventionThe Post-Classical / Medieval era

One piece of history in your inbox, weekly

New empires, events and features as they land — one good email a week. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.

Empires active in c. 1088-1117 CE

Related science, technology & invention events

Further reading

The wider story

A Little History of Science

William Bynum

Warm, jargon-free tour of discovery from Babylonian stargazers to the genome.

Get it on Amazon →

As an Amazon Associate, Human Saga earns from qualifying purchases.