IT WOULD APPEAR THAT THIS FORM OF DAGGER OR SWORD IS PRESENT IN BUTHAN, TIBET AND IN PARTS OF CHINA THAT ARE NEAR TIBET. I SAW QUITE A FEW NICE EXAMPLES IN CHENGDU CHINA YEARS AGO AND SOMETHING SIMULAR SAID TO BE A MONGOLIAN DAGGER/KNIFE. THESE DAGGERS ARE STILL BEING MADE BUT MANY WERE MADE BEFORE CHINA WAS OPEN TO TOURISTS AS WELL SO THEY WERE LIKELY TO HAVE BEEN USED ENTIRELY BY THE LOCALS. CHINA HAS NOT BEEN OPEN TO OUTSIDERS AND TOURISTS FOR LONG MY FIRST TRIP INTO RED CHINA WAS IN 1982 AND ALL THAT WAS ALLOWED AT THAT TIME WAS A DAY TRIP BY BUS FROM MACAU. THERE WAS NO PROVISION FOR BUYING ANYTHING EXCEPT AT ONE FRIEND-SHIP STORE THEY WERE STILL BUILDING. WE WERE NOT ALLOWED TO HAVE CHINESE MONEY OR BUY ANYTHING ANYWHERE ELSE USING HONG KONG OR US DOLLARS. NO ONE WAS ALLOWED ANYWHERE NEAR TIBET AT THAT TIME.
SIMULAR ITEMS THRUOUT THE AREA IS NOT A GREAT SUPRIZE AS THERE ARE MANY MINORITY TRIBES WHO WERE NOMADIC AND TRAVELED ABOUT WITH THEIR FLOCKS. THERE ARE QUITE A FEW TRIBES IN CHINA WHO FAVOR THE DHA AS WELL.
THESE ARE JUST MY THOUGHTS AND OBSERVATIONS ON IT AS I HAVE NO WRITTEN REFRENCE OR STUDY DONE ON THE SUBJECT.
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