Ariel and others,
I know there has been a great deal of argument about the origins of these daggers or knives. I am not so much interested in an argument as I am in giving you something to consider. In order to do that, I thought it would be a good idea to consider some blades the Yao would most likely have encountered from Arab traders from the Swahili coast, Zanzibar, and Madagascar. I have chosen 3 types including the Omani kattara, common to the East African coast, the Zanzibari style saif/nimcha, also originating with Arab traders, likely from Oman, and a set of knives(notably their handles) made on the Swahili coast which was sold by Michael Blackman(credit to his web site for this image).
1. The kattara: Note the silver work on the baldric mounts and compare it to the knife in question. Note also the construction paper-thin tooled leather.
2. The saif: 1. Note the bolster material which is a silver alloy with a slight yellowish tint. While my picture and lighting are not great, the material is identical in color to that of the knife in question. Note also how the bolster is faceted, like the knife bolster. 2. The saif also has a construction paper-thin tooled leather cover over wood, almost identical in type, if not in decoration, to the knife. 3. You'll see also that the saif's scabbard has its leather cover stitched at the top edge, just like the knife. 4. Finally a singular baldric ring, nicely worked in silver, is located on the saif's scabbard towards the top. This is a very unique feature. The rivets in the knife seem to be very large and I have to wonder if they are decorative rivet covers. And while we normally see a saif's tang run to the end of the hilt, in some cases, they are riveted(see pic).
3. Swahili coast knives: Here are finely worked ivory handles with faceted bolsters that would look just as much at home on a kard dagger as the bolster on the knife we are discussing.
Of course, none of this is conclusive proof, but, again, these are things to consider. Naturally, the ivory hilt on the knife we are discussing does not match ivory hilts that were much chunkier and less artistic found in sub-Saharan Africa's interior. But, we know fine ivory work was done on the Islamic coast and may have even been imported.
Based on the examples we have seen the Yao knife blades seem to be utilitarian and don't seem to have a consistent style or shape...they are just plain, often unattractive, blades. In the case of the knife/dagger under discussion, it has even been suggested to me that it looks Uzbek.
I am not sure we are any closer to a conclusion, and I could not agree more that the dagger/knife has a very E. Asian look to it, but I hope I have offered some reasonable items to consider.
