Pieces of magnetite with natural permanent magnetization (lodestones) provided the earliest compasses for navigation. The property of magnetism was first discovered in antiquity through lodestones. Lodestones, suspended so they could turn, were the first magnetic compasses. The other question is how lodestones get magnetized. The name "magnet" may come from lodestones found in Magnesia, Anatolia. Lodestones were used as an early form of magnetic compass. The name "magnet" may come from lodestones found in Magnesia. Lodestones that pull metal from hundreds of yards away! Lodestones have frequently been displayed as valuable or prestigious objects. He has also worked on pieces that implemented the Earth's magnetic field using lodestones.