a small pocket compass fitted with a sundial to tell the hour of the day.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, published 1913 by G. & C. Merriam Co.

References in periodicals archive

Conditions were variable for the closing clay of the Winter Series, with the CYCA's leading female compelitors out in force for some fine racing in a 4-5 knot westerly breeze that flicked either side of west on the compass dial and dropped to 1.5 knots as the back markers crossed the start line.

Ladies first: a sun drenched Sydney Harbour welcomed the 50 competitors in the CYCA Winter Series Ladies Day Race

Other sixteenth-century devices used an arm above the compass dial to cast a shadow representing the true N/S direction on the dial, but the principle was the same.

Portolan charts: vital tool of the age of discovery

When I come up to this tree my direction and cross reference heading will marry up to exactly what is indicated on the compass dials. A tree will make sense of this trick.

Orienteering: how not to get lost in the great outdoors

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Compass dial