Compass universally used as compass until the invention of the box-like compass with a 'dry' pivoting needle sometime around 1300. Originally, many compasses were marked only as to the direction of magnetic north, or to the four cardinal points (north, south, east, west). Later, these were divided, in China into 24, and in Europe into 32 equally spaced points around the compass card. For a table of the thirty-two points, see compass points. In the modern era, the 360-degree system took hold. This system is still in use today for civilian navigators. The degree system spaces 360 equidistant points located clockwise
Points of the compass points and degrees clockwise from north. The third gives the equivalent bearing to the nearest degree from north or south towards east or west. The "CW" column gives the fractional-point bearings increasing in the clockwise direction and "CCW" counterclockwise. The final three columns show three common naming conventions: No "by" avoids the use of "by" with fractional points; "USN" is the system used by the US Navy; and "RN" is the Royal Navy system. Colour coding shows whether each of the three naming systems matches the "CW" or "CCW" column. Points of the compass The points of the compass mark