Yunnan Dha/Dao?

[Nathaniel]

Congratulations Emanuel on the beautiful piece. Very interesting and puzzling piece. insightful analysis by Ian and Philip. I must say I'm not clear on this piece either...Chinese Tai mix from along the Yunnan, Lao and Vietnamese borders??? I thought perhaps too it was Vietnamese....but after Ian and Philips comments it seems like more of a Chinese influenced/ inspired piece. The ferrule does reminds one somewhat of the hourglass/reflected lotus you see in Tai swords. The one old Tai pattern I can pick out is ///\\\///\\\///\\\ band on the pommel just above the follage.

[Emanuel]

Thank you gentlemen for the great comments.

The hump on the handle and the Chinese carving style are the main elements that made me consider a Chinese dao. The mix if features and the quality are what appealed to me.

Any more clues on the geometric motif? the alternating T mark?

I will post more pics after cleaning and etching the blade.

Regards,
Emanuel