Translation to English request

[EllenKennon]

This is on an antique scroll I received as a gift. Any idea what it says?

[Jim]

It (slightly mis-) quotes some lines from the very famous poem Eight Immortals of the Wine Cup by Du Fu:

 

天子呼来不上船, 自称臣是酒中仙 

 

is the received version, this has

 

天子呼来不上船, 自称是正酒中仙 (I think)

 

Can't find that version anywhere online on a quick search. Du Fu is very famous so there's various translations available; this one does your lines:

 

When summoned by the Emperor, he will not board the Imperial barge; [Li Bai] calls himself “The official who is the god of wine.”

https://collections.artsmia.org/art/118816/du-fus-eight-immortals-of-the-wine-cup-terai-yosetsu

 

Also found this:

http://www.gotheborg.com/glossary/eightimmortalsofthewinecup.shtml

 

Then it's signed, think it says 湛邗散人 did the calligraphy (试毫 - literally test a brush but think it's figurative). It looks like a pen-name which means something like The Idler of the Zhan and Han rivers; not too sure about second character. ETA 散人 is more like The Forgotten Man actually.

Last line is I think a place name, 耒下 Leixia,, which is a mountain in Hunan, then the only thing I can think for the last two characters doesn't seem likely at all as it looks like 胱不 which wouldn't make any sense AFAICT. Could well be wildly off there, first character might just be 来 looking at how it's written earlier.

Someone will hopefully be along to clear the latter part up but the poem ID is pretty solid.