PALE

(Lat. pal us, a stake.) In Heraldry, the first and simplest kind of ordinary. It is bounded by two vertical lines, at equal distances from the sides of the escutcheon, of which it encloses one third. It seldom contains more than three charges. The pallet, when borne by itself, is one half of the pale; but sometimes as many as three pallets are borne together. A coat bisected by a vertical line, with a different field on each side of it, is said to be party (or divided) per pale. The pale is a very ancient and honourable bearing. PALE, [s. 887]