Some dossums

[blue lander]

The first one is Tibetan, bought from a very reliable Nepali source who bought it from a Tibetan man who said it was made in Tibet. It's wicked sharp. I especially like the screw and bolt on the tang. The decoration appears to be a dragon, which I thought was more associated with Bhutan.

The second one is clearly a factory made tourist piece but it was about 10 bucks so I bought it anyways. I haven't recieved it yet, but these are pictures from the auction. The seller described it as a "sioux indian" dagger, but it's obviously a dossum. The handle and sheath are made of resin according to the seller. The front has two fish on the hilt, a common Tibetan Buddhist motif. I don't know what kind of animals are on the sheath or what they're kneeling in front of, but it looks like a Tibetan hat at the bottom. The back has Mongolian writing on it. The font is a little weird, but it roughly translates to "steppe memory". I assume it's an Inner Mongolian tourist knife made in China. Is there such a thing as a Chinese or Mongolian dossum, or are they restricted to Tibet/Bhutan?