I recentley made a compass for a contest and liked it so much that I decided to post it here. Feedback is apreciated!
vary nice.
it need someting more.
like a patern on the outside
What do you mean by that?
The chain still needs some work, it should be resting on the surface below.
I think the scene as a whole need something more, maybe a pen, protractor or some other navigation equipment.
Also the lightning might need some work to make the compass stand out a bit more.
I think it would be fun to see some gold/bronze leaf and/or relief work on the edges of the compass. Maybe not quite this fancy, but this is the general idea I’m thinking.
(Largeish picture warning) http://imgtest.antiquorum.com/203/full/551.jpg
+1 to everything Morio said.
Maybe a lantern or candle would help you pin the light source. (I made some free candles awhile ago, but they got taken off blend swap in a big clean out awhile that got rid if some good stuff along with a lot of junk. I like to think that anyways, cause I know those candles worked pretty well.) I can post em up here if you want to take a look, or even just use them, they’re completely free.
Edit: forget the previous, it’s still on blendswap.com, I just found it again by accident. 
http://www.blendswap.com/3D-models/misc-objects/sintels-shelter-candles-v-2/