Actually, a great many old cannon and even handguns (particularly bluderbusses) were made of brass/bronze/coppery stuff, and in fact the term "gun metal", so commonly referring to blued steel in modern N America, originally (and thus arguably properly) refers to a certain copper alloy commonly so used in Europe. Cortes even got Maya copper casters to make him cannon. Believe it or not, a lot of early cannon (bombards, I think they were called) were even wooden (with metal bands). I like these shabrias, and though I didn't think it appropriate to argue concerning mine after I'd asked opinions on it, I will tell you that I consider this an excellent example of the misuse of the term "tourist" dagger. These are modern shabrias, in the current (post wwII?) style; plain and simple. Mine is nicely made with a sharp forged diamond section blade, and is no rougher in its construction or finish than expected on "tribal" level pieces; I'd venture to say the same of yours. I haven't handled mine in a while, but I think the blade's surface was filed to finish. Typically they bear a nice native cutler's mark, which it seems is typically a name and date(?) Light and strong, they are designed and constructed in such a way as to be useful for violence and for work, and the metal clad construction seems to me to have come from more Southern Arab influence, the earlier ones having horn "scale" handles with somewhat of a khinzalish look, as I recall.
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