I say Africa, you say?

[dennee]

I found another example of a Tibetan pen case that's a little simpler in construction than the last but has gold koftgari. Koftgari, especially in silver, was a very common decoration on iron (on belts, scabbards, etc.) in Tibet, usually heavily Chinese-influenced in motifs.

There are a number of references to substantial pen cases being used as a weapon of opportunity, as a cosh, in self-defense. It would be interesting to see that such items were also transformed into concealed weapons of a still more lethal character. The police/athlete/thug/etc. monks known as "Dob-dobs" were known to frequently carry concealed knives.