The matka or matochka compass was made in the second half of the 19th century. This is a round wooden box with a cover and a paper card indicating 16 rhumbs. It features a magnetized needle on a spike. The north is indicated by a stylized flower.
For many centuries, such compasses were the only navigation instruments used by Pomor seafarers. Locals used it on their journeys to the Arctic Ocean. Russian Pomors laid the foundation of a new type of seafaring — ice navigation. They brought under control the harsh northern waters or “the cold seas.”
The Pomors could calculate time by the Sun and stars. They knew the characteristics of ebb and flow very well throughout their settlement and navigation area. Boat helmsmen used to know the sea better than other seafarers. They took note of conspicuous points ashore and told other people about them. A complex network of sea routes was recorded in hand-written pilot books which were passed on from generation to generation. The books contained detailed information on useful landmarks and ship directions. But nevertheless, it was impossible to navigate without nautical instruments in total darkness, fog, or on high seas.
The Pomors invented a device, rather simple from the modern viewpoint. It was called “vetromet” (windthrower) and was both a solar clock and a compass all in one. This primitive instrument was made of wood and had no magnetized needle. Its base was made in the form of a spherical segment about the size of a big washbasin. Thanks to the rounded bottom, it could be kept in a horizontal plane even when the boat listed.
Holes were made on the upper flat surface divided into 32 graduated sections. Pencil-thick wooden sticks showing rhumbs were inserted in the holes. A long pin was positioned at the center of the circle intended for finding the north line by noon shadow. On summits, capes, and other easy-to-see locations along the coastline, crosses were installed featuring crossbars aligned with the north-south direction. To know the course within the accuracy of a rhumb, it was necessary to bring the central pin into coincidence with the cross directly side-facing the observer.
In 1597, the first documented information appeared stating that the northerners had magnetic compasses and could use them properly. In fact, there is no doubt that local seafarers became familiar with the compass much earlier but still continued to use their own devices.
