1. تَمت بدورٌ في سَماء صِناعةٍ

    عَنها اِنجَلى غَيمٌ وَزالَ بِأَسرهِ

    Full moons reached perfection in the sky of craftsmanship,

    From which a cloud cleared and vanished entirely.

  2. إِذ بانَ عَن كَشف الرُموز قِناعُهُ

    وَالدَهر جادَ بِفَكه مِن أَسره

    When its veil fell away, revealing the symbols,

    And time granted it release from captivity.

  3. فَهُوَ الَّذي أَحصى الفُنون جَميعها

    وَاِنحَلَّ مشكلُها بِواضح سره

    For it is the one that enumerated all the arts,

    And their difficulties were resolved by the clarity of its secret.

  4. وَهُوَ المُحيط بِكُل فَن أَظرف

    فَاقدُم عَلَيهِ وَاِرتشف مِن ثَغره

    And it encompasses every art of finest elegance;

    So approach it and sip from its lips.

  5. وَاشكر صَنيع الداوريّ محمد

    فَهُوَ الَّذي أَحيا العلوم بمصره

    And give thanks for Muhammad al-Dawari's good deed,

    For he is the one who revived the sciences in his Egypt.

  6. لِمَ لا وَإِنّ كَتابنا في عَهده

    جادَ الزَمان لَدى الأَنام بِنشره

    Why not, when, in his time, our book

    Was generously published by time among mankind?

  7. مُذ تَمَّ بَدرُ الطَبع قُلت مؤرخاً

    أَبدى الخديويّ الفُنون بِعَصره

    When printing's full moon reached completion, I said, marking the date:

    The Khedive brought the arts to light in his age.