Marine Magnetic Compass

Timeline

1. c. 1543–1546Venice · ItalyVenetian and Genoese compass makers divided the compass card into 32 points and labeled the wind rose; the magnetic needle was pivoted on a brass cap inside the compass box, kept level by a gimbal, adapting to the rolling of Mediterranean and ocean-going vessels.
2. c. 1547–1550Seville · AndalusiaSpanish and Portuguese ocean-going merchant ships fixed the compass box in a deck binnacle; crews recorded magnetic declination in different sailing zones and corrected headings in their route logs, promoting the institutionalized combined use of the magnetic compass, quadrant, and chart.