divination compass; luopan

Varnished wooden disc with a glass covered magnetic compass in the centre forming a divining compass, luopan, for fengshui. Chinese inscription in black ink on the underside indicates the maker is Wang Yang-xi from Xiuning county, Anhui, Xin-an, province.

See Stephan Feuchtwang (1974) An Anthropological Analysis of Chinese Geomancy Vientiane: Editions Vithagna. Part Two 'The indigenous model' explains the significance of the several rings and the symbols in them.

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