A Nation Shaped by Rain: Exhibition Celebrates Scotland’s Wettest Obsession

The National Library of Scotland in Edinburgh has launched an exhibition dedicated to what is arguably the country’s most famous feature: rain. Running from 19 June until 30 April 2027, the display examines rain’s influence on Scottish science, literature, and daily life.

At the heart of the exhibition is James Hutton, the 18th-century scientist regarded as the father of modern geology. In 1784, he formulated a “theory of rain”, outlining the principles of condensation of aqueous vapour in the air. Between 100 and 160 billion cubic metres of rain fall on Scotland each year.

The exhibition also features a rare copy of Daemonologie, a 1597 treatise by King James VI of Scotland (and I of England) that blamed witches for conjuring storms that delayed the arrival of his new queen, Anne of Denmark. The work inspired William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, which appears alongside the rain-drenched antihero of Robert Burns’s poem “Tam O’Shanter”.

Other exhibits include early rain maps, one from 1912 charting 25 years of rainfall, and a weather forecast wall where visitors can play TV meteorologist with pre-digital symbols. The exhibition opens on 17 June with Heather Reid, a well-known BBC Scotland forecaster, doing the honours.

Alison Stevenson, the library’s director of collections, noted that rain permeates manuscripts, maps, poetry, and newspapers. Despite heavy rainfall in western and northern Scotland, Edinburgh is one of the driest cities in the UK – Rome receives more rain annually.

The exhibition is dedicated to Mel Houston, the library’s preventive conservator who died in a flash flood in the Scottish Borders in early 2023. She had played a key role in protecting the library’s buildings and collections from climate change risks.