Compass rose

A compass rose is a figure displaying the orientation of the cardinal directions, north, south, east and west on a map. Naming all 32 points on the rose is called Boxing the compass.

The "rose" term arises from the fairly ornate figures used with early compasses. Today the use and idea of a compass rose is found on or features in almost all navigation systems, including NDB and VOR systems, some GPS sets and similar.