Charleston’s Old Market House was built in 1841 in the form of a Greek temple. It has stood at the front of the Charleston City Market until the present time. Charleston was the first state to secede from the Union in 1861, and many Southerners made their way to this building to volunteer as soldiers. After the war it became a Confederate Museum, run by the Daughters of the Confederacy. Unfortunately, photography is not allowed inside of this museum. However I was free to photograph the building’s nearly 175-year-old wrought iron stair railing. At the moment, the midday sun beautifully illuminated it, and the softly focused colors of neighboring flags mesh perfectly with the graceful curlicues of the historic and decorative ironwork.