How did people discover that a floating or sinking magnetic needle can be used to indicate the north? How did the idea of north, south, east, and west begin, and how did sailors learn to use these directions? How did sailors navigate before the compass was invented? And how did they start using the compass in navigation? These are some of the puzzles we will try to solve in this book.
The history of the compass is a milestone with mythical dimensions around human inventions. It is the story of invention, innovation, opportunity, and capitalism.
It is the account of how one civilization made a significant invention and how another civilization on the other side of the world implemented this invention, promoting trade and generating wealth. The history of the compass is the story of human civilization and its ability to prosper by using inventions, thus developing a technology through which it exploits the possibilities it provides.