Please feel free to jump in with another possible explanation of the hand positions. .......I know I'm certainly open to other possible scenarios. Same here. To all who live in a house with stairs, get up out of your chairs right now, walk upstairs and see if you can figure out a different scenario. Oh, and be sure to hurry back and tell us what you think. :)
Couldn't it be the position a hand would take if someone were steadying him/herself to carry something with the other hand that had weight to it?