Phoenician Trade Skills With the hindsight we have today, the Phoenician trade in knowledge was almost more important than any exchange of goods. Wood and ivory carving were Phoenician specialties and skills in these areas, as well as in gold- and metalsmithery, were shared widely. Knowledge of glassblowing, an invention believed to have originated in coastal Phoenicia, also spread far and wide. Of course, the marine and navigational tricks they protected couldn't be kept secret forever either. In fact, the Phoenicians should be thought of as the intuitive adventurers who first and finally put long-known barometric and astronomical theory into practice. They knew the winds, the currents and weather of the Mediterranean like no other. They are also believed to have "discovered" Polaris (the Pole Star) and used it as a navigational aid. Finally, one of their great scholars, Magnon, is considered to be one of the earliest agronomists in the world. His 28-volume treatise on agriculture was widely read and consulted by contemporaneous people of all cultures.