The compass has always been one of the most important navigational instruments, since it enabled mariners to know the direction in which they were sailing. This example is a bare needle compass - meaning that the needle moves above the card, rather than being attached to the bottom of a rotating card - in a wooden box with a lid. The card, which is printed on paper is marked only with the points of the compass. The north point is decorated with a fleur-de-lys, which had become standard by this time, and the east point is also slightly decorated. The maker's name is written around the centre of the card, with his address given as 'near Wapping Old Stairs London'. Nothing else is known of this maker.