A powerful hand?

Looks relaxed, doesn't it? Languid even. It's all about appearances.

It's the hand of Constantine, declared the Roman emperor Augustus in 306AD, in York. Well, it's not actually his hand, of course, but it's the hand of his statue. Which I rather like. I'm rather partial to a nice forearm, too...

I've often wondered about the pose of the hand. It puts me in mind of Michelangelo's Adam in the Sistine Chapel. I've got no idea if it's deliberate, or, if it is deliberate, what I'm to make of the connection.