Celebrating the changing roles of women in Scotland

A new exhibition on household chores through the ages opens this Saturday at Summerlee Museum of Scottish Industrial Life on Heritage Way in Coatbridge.
Entitled All in a Day’s Work, the North Lanarkshire exhibition, which opens on October 7, takes its theme from the old saying ‘Man may work from sun to sun, but a woman’s work is never done.’
Using a range of material from the museum’s collections, including photographs, advertisements, archival documents, domestic appliances and other eclectic artefacts, the exhibition shows how household roles and attitudes have changed since the 18th century.

Summerlee Museum in Coatbridge

Jenny Noble, CultureNL’s curator of social history, said: “We invite visitors to discover the changing role of women, compare the lives of wealthy families with poorer households and investigate the impact of labour-saving devices.
“There’s lots to see, hear and handle, including film footage from National Library of Scotland’s Moving Image Archive and extracts from our own oral history archive of Lanarkshire women talking about their experiences. For children, there will be objects to handle, trails to follow and costumes to try on.”
“Does the old saying still hold true today? Come along and decide for yourself – all are welcome to join the debate.”
There will be weekend and school holiday events linked with the exhibition, which runs until November 26.
Admission is free.

A promotional poster for the All In A Day’s Work exhibition