Robert is it possible that the guard is made from the base of an old file?
If the dagger was part of an espada y daga (sword and dagger) set, then it was intended to be used as a left-hand weapon and the longer guard may have been designed to serve as a "shelf" of sorts to help pass or parry the opponent's weapon, similar in idea to a main-gauche (hope that takes some of the mystery out of it).
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