Ruined bichaq/yataghan

[Emanuel]

Hello,
Here is a bichaq or yataghan blade that I got some time ago. It was heavily encrusted with rust to the extent that much of the metal in the tang had been corroded away. The bid was low and I thought what the heck, if I clean it up and restore it I'll have a nice yataghan for peanuts.
So far the cleaning went well, most of the rust is gone, although it could do with a few more dunks in lemon juice.
It is 16.5" long or 42cm, and the spine at the base is 8mm thick. What I like about the piece is that it has an integral bolster, a feature that so far I haven't seen on many yataghan.

In time I will carve some scales in walrus ivory or maybe oosik. I am undecided about how far I'll take the sanding to remove the pitting. I don't want to go too deep and end up with a really thin blade.
Any comments as to origin, or any thoughts are always appreciated.

Emanuel