The Antikythera Compass of China
2600 BCE (legendary) / 300 CE (confirmed)
The south-pointing chariot is an ancient Chinese mechanical device that maintained a constant directional reference regardless of which way the chariot turned — using a differential gear mechanism, not a magnetic compass. A figure on top of the chariot always pointed south. The differential gear principle it used was not independently discovered in the West until the 19th century. Chinese legend attributes its invention to the Yellow Emperor in 2600 BCE.