Very nice. A great honest piece. I'll bet that the stuff on the blade is grease, not varnish. But either way a solvent like acetone should remove it. If you can slip the rattan bands off the scabbard and clean it out, it will be good. If that's not possible, attach small solvent soaked pieces of cloth to a wire and clean it out. I've used a gun cleaning rod with bronze brush to good effect also.
You'll enjoy this piece. While not flashy, it's as good as they get!
Steve
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