Sharon, thanks for your comment. Yes, the hand was very distracting indeed and my first attempts using the clone stamp and the healing tool left obvious traces so I left everything in its original state. But as your comment shows, this was not a very good idea so I looked for a better solution; I think I have found it now.
Wow, that's really lavish! It's too bad about the hand and arm on the right. It would be a difficult job but cloning them out might improve this image. ~Sharon