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The compass rose has a long and colorful history dating back to ancient Greece. It's a valuable tool for cartographers and navigators around the world, and there are many beautiful renderings of this simple, effective device. Below, we will show you how draw a 16-point compass rose of your own.
Steps
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On a sheet of sturdy art paper, draw a cross in the center.
- Make two marks equidistant from the top of the paper, and with a pencil, lightly draw a horizontal line from left to right between them.
- Mark the center point of the paper a couple inches above and below the horizontal line, then lightly draw a vertical line from top to bottom. It should look like this:
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Draw a large circle using your drafting compass. For this example, we’ll assume a circle with a 3” radius. This circle will mark the outer edge of your finished compass rose.Advertisement
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Using a protractor, mark the outer circle at 45°, 135°, 225°, and 315°, and with your pencil, lightly draw connecting lines from the 45° mark to the 225° mark, and from the 315° mark to the 135° mark.
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Using a protractor again, make marks around the outer circle at the following points:
- 22.5°
- 67.5°
- 112.5°
- 157.5°
- 202.5°
- 247.5°
- 292.5°
- 337.5°
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Connect the following points:
- 22.5° and 202.5°
- 67.5° and 247.5°
- 112.5° and 292.5°
- 157.5° and 337.5°
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Draw a second circle with a 2” radius.
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Adjust your compass for 1” radius, and lightly draw a third circle in the center.
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Lightly draw the arrows for the main cardinal points. Start at the 0° point (N) on the outer circle, and draw to the intersection of the 45° mark and the innermost circle.
- Do the same from the 0° mark to the intersection of the 315° mark and the innermost circle.
- Repeat this process at the 90° point (E), drawing lines to intersect the innermost circle and the 45° and 135° points; at the 180° point (S), drawing lines to intersect the innermost circle and the 135° and 225° points; and from the 270° point (W), drawing lines to intersect the innermost circle and the 225° and 315° points. Your compass rose should look something like this:
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Lightly draw the secondary points. Start at the 45° point (NE) on the outer circle, and draw to the intersection of the 22.5° mark and the right side of the N cardinal point.
- Do the same from the 45° mark to the intersection of the 67.5° mark and the top side of the E cardinal point.
- Repeat this process at the 135° point (SE), drawing lines to intersect the bottom of the E cardinal point and right of the S cardinal point; at the 225° point (SW), drawing lines to intersect the left side of the S cardinal point and the bottom of the W cardinal point; and from the 315° point (NW), drawing lines to intersect the top of the W cardinal point and the left side of the N cardinal point. Your compass rose should now look something like this:
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Add in the final points, starting with the NNE point. Start at the intersection of the outer circle and the 22.5° mark, and draw a line from the outer circle to the intersection of the middle circle and the right side of the N cardinal point. Do the same from the 22.5° mark to the intersection of the middle circle and the top side of the NE cardinal point.
- Repeat this process at the 67.5° point (ENE), drawing connecting lines to intersect the middle circle and the bottom of the NE cardinal point and top of the E cardinal point.
- From the 112.5° point (ESE) to the bottom of the E cardinal point and the top of the SE cardinal point.
- From the 157.5° point (SSE) to the bottom of the SE cardinal point and the right side of the S cardinal point.
- From the 202.5° point (SSW) to the left side of the S cardinal point and the bottom of the SW cardinal point
- From the 247.5° point (WSW) to the top of the SW cardinal point and the bottom of the W cardinal point
- From the 292.5° point (WNW) to the top of the W cardinal point and the bottom of the NW cardinal point
- And from the 337.5° point (NNW) to the top of the NW cardinal point and the left side of the N cardinal point;. Your compass rose should now look something like this:
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Add the names of the compass points as shown:
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Add color to suit your final environment, and happy navigating!
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Community Q&A
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QuestionHow do I draw a good circle?Community AnswerYou could use a protractor to make a good, clean circle that's neat and accurate.
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QuestionHow do I draw a compass rose without a protractor?Community AnswerInstead of using the protractor to draw the angles, use a ruler and mark each of the sections in half.
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QuestionWhat are the sixteen points of a compass used for?Community AnswerBetween the cardinal points are the half cardinal points of the compass: NE, SE, SW, NW. Directions dividing cardinal and half cardinal points are called false points: NNE, ENE, ESE, SSE, SSW, WSW, WNW, NNW.
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Tips
- Search for color combinations on the web to find great sets of matching colors. Use bold colors for a vibrant look, or muted colors on parchment for a great antique look.Thanks
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Things You'll Need
- Paper
- Drafting compass
- Protractor
- Ruler
About This Article
Article Summary
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To draw a compass rose, start by drawing a circle with 1 horizontal and 1 vertical line intersecting in the center. Then, use a protractor to mark 16 equidistant points around the circle, and draw a straight line through each point. Next, draw a circle along the 16 points, followed by another circle inside of that one. Finally, draw the main cardinal points and then the secondary and final points inside of the main circle. To learn how to label and color in your compass rose, scroll down!
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Reader Success Stories
- "I'm in grade 8 and we had to do a project on British North America in 1862. I finished the map part, and all I had to do was the compass rose. This helped me a lot, thanks!" ..." more
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"I'm in grade 8 and we had to do a project on British North America in 1862. I finished the map part, and all I had to do was the compass rose. This helped me a lot, thanks!"
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"The way it was explained with corresponding images gave you an idea of how it should look when you have completed it. A+."
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"The steps on how to draw a compass really helped me with my geography homework!"
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