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The Riddle of the Compass: The Invention That Changed the World
by Aczel, Amir D
- Used
- Hardcover
- Condition
- Near Fine in Near Fine dust jacket
- ISBN 10
- 0151005060
- ISBN 13
- 9780151005062
- Seller
-
Amherst, Nova Scotia, Canada
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Near Fine in Near Fine dust jacket. 2001. Hardcover. 0151005060 . Tight unmarked book in crisp dust jacket. ; 8.06 X 5.72 X 0.82 inches; 200 pages .
Synopsis
Sometimes it pays to be in the right place at the right time. Certainly the mariners in Amalfi in the twelfth century were. Here the compass was first invented and used in navigation, eventually helping to make Italians the world's greatest sailors. But the story of the compass is shrouded in mystery and myth. It begins in ancient China around the birth of Christ. A mysterious lodestone whose powers affected metal was known to the Emperor. This piece of metal suspended in water always pointed north and was put to excellent use in feng shui, the Chinese art of finding the right location. However, it was the Italians who unleashed the compass's formidable powers on ships at sea. Throughout the ancient world, sailors navigated by wind, and stars, and the routes of migrating birds, but bad weather and winter storms impeded their travels. When the compass migrated to Italy, the modern world began: Venice, trade with the East, the Age of Discovery. The compass made it all possible, and this is its fascinating story.
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Details
- Bookseller
- B-Line Books
(CA)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 45089
- Title
- The Riddle of the Compass: The Invention That Changed the World
- Author
- Aczel, Amir D
- Format/Binding
- Hardcover
- Book Condition
- Used - Near Fine in Near Fine dust jacket
- ISBN 10
- 0151005060
- ISBN 13
- 9780151005062
- Publisher
- Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
- Place of Publication
- New York
- Date Published
- 2001
- Keywords
- 0151005060
- Bookseller catalogs
- History-World;
Terms of Sale
B-Line Books
Return: If the book is not as described, we will refund cost of book and shipping. If for any reason the buyer does not want the book, even though it is as described, we will offer a refund minus shipping both ways (within 14 days).
About the Seller
B-Line Books
Biblio member since 2003
Amherst, Nova Scotia
About B-Line Books
B-Line Books is an internet business operating from my large home in Amherst, Nova Scotia. I am a retired English teacher with a lifetime of gathered books for sale. Presently, about 24,000 books in 90 categories are listed with an emphasis in the humanities. I look for books I am interested in myself, and feel that most of the inventory is of high quality. See for yourself.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Tight
- Used to mean that the binding of a book has not been overly loosened by frequent use.
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
- Crisp
- A term often used to indicate a book's new-like condition. Indicates that the hinges are not loosened. A book described as crisp...
- Jacket
- Sometimes used as another term for dust jacket, a protective and often decorative wrapper, usually made of paper which wraps...
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