The Just Judges
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The Just Judges is the lower left panel of the Ghent Altarpiece, commonly attributed to Jan Van Eyck and his brother Hubert Van Eyck. It was stolen in the night of 10 to 11 April 1934, possibly by Arsène Goedertier. The bishop of Ghent received a demand of 1 million Belgian Francs. On 25 November 1934 Goedertier revealed on his deathbed that he was the only one who knew where the masterpiece was hidden, and that he would take the secret to his grave. Although several people have claimed to know the whereabouts, the painting was never retrieved and is now believed to be destroyed. It was replaced by a 1945 copy from the hand of Jef Vanderveken.
The panel is mentioned in the The Fall (novel) by Albert Camus. The protagonist in this book, Jean-Baptiste Clamence, claims to have found the painting in a bar called "Mexico City", where it was traded by a client for a bottle of gin.
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