Part 4 of Time For a Map, featuring Seth and Molly’s historical account of how the vikings used a crystal to navigate cloudy seas, and how such a device might be likened to modern day GPS.
(TRT 5:19)
Big Picture Science – Time For a Map: The Viking Sunstone
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in On Architecture, Vitruvius mentions cristals to determine North and South for placement of cities — in order to get the least wind and the most sunlight in houses (e.g. bedrooms facing east, bathing rooms facing west and art displays facing North).
On Architecture was written before 15BC.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitruvius