Hello Eric,
Aside from signalling status, these pieces seem to have been mainly ceremonial. The higher up in the hierarchy the less likely you are needing a blade in a pinch...
The blades tend to be of high quality though; I can easily imagine them mainly put to real use at cutting areca nuts for betel chewing in a ceremonial setting. I haven't come across any good early sources on usage though.
Regards,
Kai
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