A method of making a compound magnet that comprises a plurality of regions at least some of which have different magnetization directions. The method comprises assembling a plurality of sections of magnetizable material having a preferred direction of magnetization into a block, each section corresponding to a region or a part of a region, and the preferred magnetization direction of each section being aligned with the desired magnetization direction of its corresponding region. The sections in the assembled block are magnetized to form the compound magnet.