Knives with Ring Handles

From top to bottom:
KNIFE (DAO) WITH RING HANDLE

Late Eastern Zhou dynasty – Western Han dynasty, 3rd – 2nd century BCE
Reportedly discovered from Gushi County, Henan province
inventory number: XLIX:I:A.f.01.
Length: 23.5 cm

Dao are blades with one cutting edge and can include both knives and swords. This knife has a straight back and a cutting edge that tapers slightly at the front of the blade. There is a ring at the back of the handle. This ring was used to hang the knife from a belt, which kept it close to the body, demonstrating its usefulness.

KNIFE (DAO)
Late Eastern Zhou dynasty – Western Han dynasty, 3rd – 2nd century BCE
Reportedly discovered from Gushi County, Henan province
Inventory number: XLIX:I:A.f.02.
Length: 27.3 cm

This knife is very similar to XLIX:I:A.f.01., above. They were multi-purpose tools. Texts during this time were written with ink onto bamboo strips. Knives could be used to correct a mistake on the bamboo strip by shaving away the top layer. Long swords were made with the same design.