MANCA, was a square piece of gold coin, commonly valued at 30 pence; and manca was as much as a mark of silver, having its name from manu-cusa, being coined with the hand: (Leg. Canut.) But the manca and manca were not always of that value; for sometimes the former was valued at six shillings, and the latter, as used by the English Saxons, was equal in value to our half-crown. Manca sex solidis aestimetur, (Leg. H. 1. c. 69.) Thorn, in his chronicle, tells us,
that manca est pondus duorum solidorum et sex denariorum; and with him agrees Du Cange, who says, that 20 manca make 50 shillings. Manca and manca are promiscuously used in the old books for the same money.