Well I think we can agree that the black handled knives like the one I linked to are Bao An, while there may be a bit more uncertainty about the white handled knives like the ones you are talking about. For the black handled ones, they seem to all have been made in the last thirty years or so. The white handled ones seem a bit older.
Here are some things to consider. Fullers are rare on Chinese, Mongoian, and Manchu knives, but seem more common on Tibetan knives as well as these Bao An knives. So there is definitely a link.
The copper decoration seems to be a regional aspect related to Eastern Tibet and Northern Qinghai, with Eastern Tibetan, Yi, and BaoAn things all showing some degree of copper/brass decoration worked into pommels and handles. This is best characterized by layers of different types of copper, brass and white metal stacked in the pommel.
What seems to be diagnostic is the flair of the pommel, with Eastern Tibetan things showing a slight flair as you mention, while the BaoAn dao having a much more pronounced flair that is quite noticeable.
So we are trying to differentiate knives coming from the same general region made by peoples that share aesthetic approaches and techniques. All of these characteristics are then blended in a knife design that is shared throughout east Asia, from the tanto to Mongol utility knives. I think it is possible to say that some characteristics indicate which region a knife comes from, and in obvious cases we can say which people made it. Nevertheless, I am quite willing to admit that there are many knives whose characteristics are not clear enough to allow us to assign them to a specific ethnographic group.
Josh
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