Thursday June 18th 2026
The National Library of Scotland’s ‘Rain’ exhibition opens with a splash as Dance Base’s in-house company for over 60s, PRIME, poses at the National Library (photography by Neil Hanna)
Written by Midlothian View Reporter, Liam Eunson
Rainy days are ahead at the National Library of Scotland in Edinburgh as a special exhibition opens exploring Scotland’s fascination with rain, ‘drawing on the whole breadth of what the library has to offer’.
Called ‘Rain’, the library’s new annual exhibition features a range of items from different parts of the library’s collection, all exploring Scotland’s persistent preoccupation and obsession with bad weather. Some items detail the academic breakthroughs in relation to meteorology, while others relate to homegrown innovations such as the development of rain-resistant material.
Described as an exhibition that allowed curators to ‘play with all the items in the library’, such as maps, moving images and sound, this year’s exhibition displays different formats alongside different time periods, aiming to ‘capture all the different ways that Scotland engaged with writing’.
Talking to the Midlothian View, exhibition Curator Sarah Mackay explained: “We really wanted an exhibition where we could get into all the different parts of the Library’s collection. So we have 16th century books alongside manuscripts, and 1990s sheet music. We really wanted something that would allow us to play with all of the stuff that we have in the Library.”
Discussing the theme she added: “I think when people think of Scotland, they often think of rain. There’s lots of stereotypes around Scotland being rainy. Sometimes we get tourists who come in and complain because it’s too sunny, and they really came to Scotland because they wanted to experience traditional Scottish weather.
“We thought we could be a bit playful with that stereotype.”
The national film collections are on display through compilations of rainy days across Scotland and rain in popular culture is explored through the Library’s collection of musical scores and ephemera.
Director of Collections, Access and Research Alison Stevenson said:
“If we were to count the amount of times rain is mentioned in the national collections which span scientific journals and dystopian novels to film, poetry, prose, maps and music – the number would surely be in the millions. As evidenced in our newspaper and television news collections, it often makes the headlines. We talk about it, dress for it, measure it, write about it, avoid it, worry about it, sing about it.
“Rain has the power to ruin our days, our crops, to cancel a big event. But it is also essential in ensuring clean water to drink, and in the cultivation of food. This is something we can easily take for granted in Scotland.”
A silhouette art piece of Robert Burns' 'Tam O'Shanter'
The Library’s collections are complemented by borrowed items such as a Mackintosh coat, as well as rain gauges through the ages from the James Hutton Institute.
Curator Sarah Mackay added: “The first thing you see when visiting the exhibition is a large graphic of ladies dancing at T in the Park in their matching tunics and ponchos with their welly boots, and then in front of that we have a Macintosh raincoast. We really wanted to get that front and centre.”
Sarah explained that the coat was donated by Macintosh for the exhibition, displaying an iconic fashion piece associated with Scotland’s rain, adding to the exhibitions different formats aside from books. The coat is accompanied by iconic Macintosh tartan in another section of the exhibition.
“There’s things that people associate with Scotland, something quite joyful, quite playful. We wanted it to not feel too dreary. I think people have expected an exhibition about rain might be a bit bleak or a bit gloomy but we wanted it to feel quite light and quite playful.”
Alongside this ‘light and playful’ nature of the exhibition, the library highlighted the important undercurrent running all the way through the exhibition of climate change and the importance of being mindful that too much or too little rain can cause serious consequences.
Star items on display include:
– James Hutton’s ‘Theory of Rain’ from 1788. The Edinburgh born geologist who is more well known for his studies of sedimentary rock, explored air temperature and humidity in a bid to better understand why clouds form and why they produce rain. This research contributed to what we now call the ‘water cycle’.
– A first edition copy ‘Daemonologie’ by James VI (1597). Often said to be the catalyst for Scotland’s ubiquitous witch trials, it was here that the monarch blamed witches for persistently cold and stormy weather, which was later described as a ‘little Ice Age’.
– A recipe book of Katherine Jane Ellice, 1846–59, which includes a recipe for waterproofing clothes. Ellice’s is a particularly beautiful example thanks to her detailed and often humorous pen drawings that accompany the text. This book is open on a page that decries the usefulness of umbrellas in Scotland.
Old daily rainfall tracker
The National Library hosts yearly exhibitions, changing it around June every year with Sarah explaining that each exhibition is planned around two years prior. Working with external designers, the library commissioned a designer to ‘really bring it to life’.
Sarah explained: “We have really tried in this exhibition, and actually in our last couple exhibitions, to purchase what we call a handling set of books. So aside from the books behind the glass displays, we try to also have a copy that people can pick up and read.
“Letting people read things when they are in the exhibition, I think that’s very important.”
As the repository representing Scotland’s three official languages, the National Library has made sure to include a vast array of terms and words for ‘rain’ in Gàidhlig, Scots and English.
Director of Collections, Access and Research Alison Stevenson adds that ‘Rain’ is a family-friendly exhibition that will delight multi-generational groups.
“There are lots of interactive activities for children, and some of their older family members or caregivers will have their memories jogged by some of the most well-known faces of 20th-century – TV meteorologists. People will also be able to pose in front of weather maps and have their photo taken as they carry out their forecasts.”
Rain opens to the public on Friday 19 June and will run until April next year, taking over from the previous exhibition ‘Dear Library’.
The exhibition is free to enter.
Rain has been supported by Scotland’s Green Libraries Grant Fund (via the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals Scotland), The Seachdain na Gàidhlig Small Grants Fund, and the Arts and Humanities Research Council.
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