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The magnetic compass was first invented as a device for divination as early as the Chinese Han dynasty and Tang dynasty (since about 206 BC). [1] [3] [34] The compass was used in Song dynasty China by the military for navigational orienteering by 1040–44, [22] [35] [36] and was used for maritime navigation by 1111 to 1117. [37]
The compass's origins may be traced back to the Warring States period (476–221 BC), when Chinese people utilized a device known as a si nan to point in the right direction. During the early Song dynasty, a spherical compass with a small needle made of magnetic steel was created after steady development.
The compass was then used from the 11th century during the Song dynasty, Yuan dynasty, Ming dynasty, and Qing dynasty in the study of geography. One of the most famous explorers in Chinese history was the 15th century admiral Zheng He , known for the Chinese exploration of the Pacific and his treasure voyages .
The Chinese polymath Shen Kuo (1031–1095) of the Song dynasty (960–1279) was the first to accurately describe both magnetic declination (in discerning true north) and the magnetic needle compass in his Dream Pool Essays of 1088, and the Song dynasty writer Zhu Yu (fl. 12th century) was the first to mention use of the compass specifically ...
Among the Four Great Inventions, the magnetic compass was first invented as a device for divination as early as the Chinese Han dynasty (since c. 206 BC), [1] [2] and later adopted for navigation by the Song dynasty Chinese during the 11th century. [3] [4] [5] The first usage of a compass recorded in Western Europe and the Islamic world ...
Shen Kuo's written work of 1088 also contains the first written description of the magnetic needle compass, the first description in China of experiments with camera obscura, the invention of movable type printing by the artisan Bi Sheng (990–1051), a method of repeated forging of cast iron under a cold blast similar to the modern Bessemer ...
His tomb was eventually destroyed, yet Ming dynasty records indicated its location, which was found in 1983 and protected by the government in 1986. [169] The remnants of the tomb's brick structure remained, along with Song dynasty glasswares and coins. [169] The Hangzhou Municipal Committee completed a restoration of Shen's tomb in September 2001.
The luopan or geomantic compass is a Chinese magnetic compass, also known as a feng shui compass. It is used by a feng shui practitioner to determine the precise direction of a structure, place or item. Luo Pan contains a lot of information and formulas regarding its functions. The needle points towards the south magnetic pole.