The Shang Xianfu 尚献甫

Shang Xianfu was a native of Ji County in Wei Prefecture (now part of Ji County, Henan Province) during the reign of Empress Wu Zetian of the Tang Dynasty.

When Empress Wu Zetian summoned him, she intended to appoint him as Taishiling (Director of the Astronomical Bureau, an official in charge of observing celestial phenomena and compiling calendars). However, Shang Xianfu firmly declined this post. Since he was particularly skilled in astronomy, the court changed his appointment to Hunyi Jian (Supervisor of the Armillary Sphere) of the Taishi Bureau—a position that was not subordinate to the Secretariat (Mishu Sheng, a central administrative agency in the Tang Dynasty)—and Shang Xianfu took up this role.

Empress Wu Zetian frequently consulted him on celestial omens (believed in ancient China to be signs of disasters or anomalies in human affairs), and his interpretations all matched subsequent events. She also ordered Shang Xianfu to gather scholars at the Shangyang Palace to compile the Fangyu Tu (Map of Territories, a historical geographical map documenting regional divisions and landscapes).

(Source: Old Book of Tang · Biography of Shang Xianfu)