While your theories concerning the Akins coat of arms looking (to you) as if it is marshalled per pale might be plausible if there were an actual vertical division between the dexter and sinister side of the shield - there isn't - nor would there be as Thomas Akins was unmarried and died without issue; which is why my great-great-great-great grandfather, William Akins (Thomas' older brother) was appointed administrator of Thomas' estate by the court of Mecklenburg Co., North Carolina - "1785 September Session: Ordered that Letters of Administration on the Estate of Thomas Akins, Decd., issue to William Akins who produces Hugh Parks as Security, bound in £600, Administrators Sworn." If Thomas had been married then his widow would have been one of his executors, as was the case when my great-great-great-great-great grandfather Stephen McCorkle (William Akins' father-in-law) died in five years later - Heirs Executors and Administrative Records of York Co, SC - dated: 19 Oct 1790 for Stephen McCorkle "Know all once by these presence that we, Ann McCorkle William McCorkle, Archibald Barron & John Forbes of York County & State of S. Carolina are held and firmly bound to William Burton, Wm. Miley, Abraham Smith Justice of our County Court of York afore said in the present sum of Four hundred pounds lawful money of the state afore said for the true payment whereof we bind ourselves our Heir Executors & adminis. firmly by their presents. Sealed with our seals & dated this 19th day of October 1790." You also fail to take into consideration the fact that many (particularly Irish) coats of arms often have two charges placed on the field, rather than a single charge or multiples of the same charge. You can see a number of examples of two different charges being placed side by side or one on top of the other without any sort of per pale marshalling going on at all here: coats of arms. So, no, the Akins coat of arms is not marshalled per pale, it is simply two charges placed side by side, and the crest consists of two ravens ("twa corbies") as is indicated by other examples of the Akins coat of arms found on earlier tombstones: Alexander Akins gravestone Archibald Akins gravestone.