<P> The panel 's survival was threatened during outbreaks of iconoclasm , and have been damaged by fire . At times , some were sold and others were looted during war . A number of panels were taken by the German occupying forces during World War I , but were later returned to St. Bavo 's Cathedral . In 1934 two panels , The Just Judges and Saint John the Baptist , were stolen . The `` Saint John the Baptist '' panel was returned soon after , but `` The Just Judges '' panel is still missing . In 1945 , the altarpiece was returned from Germany after spending much of World War II hidden in a salt mine , which greatly damaged the paint and varnish . The Belgian art restorer Jef Van der Veken produced a copy of ' The Just Judges ' , as part of an overall restoration effort . </P>
<P> The panel 's survival was threatened during outbreaks of iconoclasm , and have been damaged by fire . At times , some were sold and others were looted during war . A number of panels were taken by the German occupying forces during World War I , but were later returned to St. Bavo 's Cathedral . In 1934 two panels , The Just Judges and Saint John the Baptist , were stolen . The `` Saint John the Baptist '' panel was returned soon after , but `` The Just Judges '' panel is still missing . In 1945 , the altarpiece was returned from Germany after spending much of World War II hidden in a salt mine , which greatly damaged the paint and varnish . The Belgian art restorer Jef Van der Veken produced a copy of ' The Just Judges ' , as part of an overall restoration effort . </P>
the ghent altarpiece which represents the divine was threatened by
the ghent altarpiece which represents the divine was threatened by
outbreaks of iconoclasm
outbreaks of iconoclasm