source: closer to van eyck

There is a consensus among art historians that the figure on the white horse in the forefront of the Just Judges panel is Hubert van Eyck (brother of Jan) and who was first commissioned to produce the Ghent Altarpiece? But is it?

Most of the drawings said to be of Hubert were produced at a later date and modelled on the features shown in the Just Judges panel. No-one really knows what he looked like, Jan excluded.

But could the man on the white horse be someone else, or even represent two people, perhaps Hubert and another person, a kind of coupling to link the next rider?

Imagine the front-line of horsemen (see previous post), coupled together, shoulder to shoulder, as if oxen under one yoke ploughing a field, heading in the same direction and serving a common purpose – a crusade, perhaps?

For sure there are multiple identities among the ten riders, but who exactly are the Just Judges and in what sense could Hubert van Eyck be considered a Just Judge?