Ariel,
I believe it was intended to look like that:
1) The blade taper has the strong ending withing a few inches of the guard. If it were a full sword it would have extened much further and grinding it down wouldn't have made sense and would have altered the shape of the fuller.
2) The blade thickness is about a 1/4 dropping to 3/16 a few inches in front of the guard. That seems light for most swords.
3) The blade curvature is fairly servere. Extending the curve for a further 12 to 20 inches would leave with something shaped like a shotel; and, this doesn't strike me as a shotel.
4) The handle is very small, perhaps made for a hand that that is no more then 2-1/2 inches wide. Again, consistent with the blade, but inconsistent with the notion of hacking down a sword blade. You would have to cut the tang considerably.
5) The scabbard is significantly old. The whole piece strikes me as having been overly cleaned or restored (as in the outside of the scabbard may have been painted or tarred) Which gives it a fresher look then really should have.
6) The mounts are fairly heavy steel. Simple, but more like military mounts then a decorative casting or backyard project.
On second though this may not be a dirk at all. It looks more like a 18-19th century child's sword.
n2s
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