European agents of serious swordmaking companies used to carry miniature copies of the real wares in their traveling cases. Prospective buyers could pick and choose. But dating them to the 1960s seems to exclude this possibility. The Bebut ( curved bladed kindjal) from the Osobist's collection carries a niello inscription on the scabbard "Kavkaz" written in the old Russian style: a local souvenir. I guess that the mini Nihonto examples were also souvenirs.
There is a Polish book of a Kris collector ( I vaguely remember he might have been an ambassador to Indonesia). His most important item was a very miniature Kris, gifted to him by Sukarno.
What was the purpose of the rest of Indonesian, Thai and Philippine mini daggers is a mystery to me. They would not have any practical value as self-defense weapons, so souvenirs is the first thing that comes into my mind.
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