How to Draw a Compass Rose

Last Updated: January 29, 2023

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

1
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:
2
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.

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3
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.
4
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°
5
Connect the following points:
- 22.5° and 202.5°
- 67.5° and 247.5°
- 112.5° and 292.5°
- 157.5° and 337.5°
6
Draw a second circle with a 2” radius.
7
Adjust your compass for 1” radius, and lightly draw a third circle in the center.
8
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:
9
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:
10
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:
11
Add the names of the compass points as shown:
12
Add color to suit your final environment, and happy navigating!

Community Q&A

Question

How do I draw a good circle?

Community Answer

You could use a protractor to make a good, clean circle that's neat and accurate.
Question

How do I draw a compass rose without a protractor?

Community Answer

Instead of using the protractor to draw the angles, use a ruler and mark each of the sections in half.
Question

What are the sixteen points of a compass used for?

Community Answer

Between 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.