Agree with the above comments re skin and brass.
As for the blade, I'm not convinced it's old. Neither am I convinced it's new. I haven't looked at enough old fullers like these to say either way. The narrow fuller looks like it's been cut by an abrasive wheel. Were old Chinese fullers like these forged, cut, or ground?
But the general shape of the blade is really good. If it's a modern blade, it's very well-made, at least in terms of geometry. Some modern blades are good, but most a poorly tapered, often far too thick near the tip for the type of sword they're meant to be. This one is not like that; this one is really good.
So while I'm not convinced it's old, I think it's probably old. If it was mine, and turned out to be modern, I'd still think it a good blade.
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