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National Library of Scotland

Acquisitions Circle

Last updated
4 June 2025
Estimated reading time
2 minutes

The National Library of Scotland is committed to collecting and preserving the nation's memory. Every day we acquire culturally and historically significant items for the national collections.

To achieve this, we need to respond quickly to auctions and compete with private buyers.

What is the Acquisitions Circle?

The Acquisitions Circle is a group of committed donors who understand the value of acquisitions to the Library and the nation. By joining, you will help us secure important items of cultural and historic significance.

Support our mission

Help us add around 172,000 physical items and 2.5 million digital items annually to our collections.

Exclusive access

Enjoy behind-the-scenes access and unique insights into our collections and projects.

Immediate impact

Enable us to respond rapidly to auctions and sales, securing rare books, manuscripts, and other valuable items.

Why we need you

Most items come to us through the Legal Deposit Scheme, which allows us to claim a copy of every item published in the UK. Our collections are also enriched by the generosity of individuals and organisations donating their private collections.

However, we must also acquire items sold on the open market, often within tight time frames and at high prices. These items are often sold by specialist dealers, collectors, or auction houses, and can appear for sale with little notice. The market is fast-moving, requiring us to act quickly to secure these treasures for the nation.

Join the Acquisitions Circle

Join the Acquisitions Circle by emailing development@nls.uk.

There is no charge to join. Membership is free with no obligation to donate.

As a member of the Acquisitions Circle, you will be called upon periodically and at short notice to help us secure items of great cultural or historic importance. Your support ensures that these treasures are preserved for future generations.

It has been fascinating to see the materials and hear about the process and costs of acquisition. I appreciate the importance of the range of material that the Library acquires, and being a member of the Circle has emphasised the need to act quickly when items become available.
Esther Acquisitions Circle member
A vintage handwritten letter on aged, torn paper with a red wax seal. The cursive ink text discusses a troubling incident involving Mr. W and Miss L, and seeks the recipient's counsel. The letter is signed 'Your devoted friend'.
Robert Burns' autographed letter signed ("Sylvander"), to "Clarinda" [Mrs. Agnes M'Lehose]. [Mossgiel, 23 February 1788]. This letter was secured at auction in the United States, thanks to the Acquisitions Circle. It incorporates a four-line Burns verse, and exhibits the heavy ink deletions Clarinda used to obscure almost all proper names and conceal their passionate friendship.
An open travel journal with handwritten entries on both pages. The left page features a black and white photograph of a building with people in front, while the right page contains a detailed cursive account of journeys through England, France, Italy, Egypt, India, and Japan. A string of white weighted beads lies diagonally across the book to gently keep it open.
The manuscript of General Sir J. Aylmer L. Haldane's 'How we escaped from Pretoria'. This important 1900 historical manuscript, which appeared later that year in Blackwood's Magazine, gives a full narrative of Haldane's capture, imprisonment and escape from a prisoner of war camp during the Boer War.