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According to Christian tradition, a midwife named Salome was brought in shortly after the birth of Jesus Christ. But who was this woman, really? And is she even in the Bible? Fast-forward to 2022, and the 2,000-year-old Tomb of Salome was discovered not far from Jerusalem. Indeed, new archaeological excavations have unearthed some very interesting parts of this puzzle, which help us make sense of the story.

Intrigued? Click through the following gallery to learn all about the story of Jesus' midwife and her tomb.

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Look at any nativity scene and you likely won’t find a midwife, and indeed the Bible doesn’t mention one in the Gospel of Luke’s account of the nativity scene.

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Of course, Mary and Joseph were there, so were a few shepherds, and “an angel of the Lord.” As for a midwife during the delivery of baby Jesus, she was nowhere to be found, according to scripture.

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The Infancy Gospel of James, also known as the Protoevangelium of James, was written in the 2nd century and is an account of the miraculous conception and all the events surrounding it.

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According to the apocryphal Gospel, Joseph goes looking for a midwife and returns to find that baby Jesus had already miraculously been born. There is no mention of a name in the text.

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This unnamed midwife, amazed by the miracle, goes and tells her friend Salome, who also happens to be a midwife, about it.

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Chapter XIX, 3 reads: “And the midwife went forth of the cave and Salome met her. And she said to her: Salome, Salome, a new sight have I to tell thee. A virgin hath brought forth, which her nature alloweth not. And Salome said: As the Lord my God liveth, if I make not trial and prove her nature I will not believe that a virgin hath brought forth.”

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Salome was not convinced of the miraculous conception, so she reached under Mary's dress to check, and her hands got burned. Salome then prayed to God for forgiveness for her lack of faith.

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An angel of the Lord appeared to Salome and told her: “Bring thine hand near unto the young child and take him up, and there shall be unto thee salvation and joy." Salome touched baby Jesus and she was healed. This is where references to Salome end in the Infancy Gospel of James.

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Salome was a very popular name among Jewish women back then. The name has its roots in the Hebrew word shalom, which translates to “peace.”

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There were therefore a number of popular women with the same name, including Queen of Judea Salome Alexandra (pictured), Salome I, the sister of Herod the Great, and the daughter of Herod the Great, known as Salome II.

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Some of us may associate the name with the story of the Jewish princess Salome, aka Salome III, the daughter of Herod II. She infamously asked her father for John the Baptist's head on a platter.

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There are two other accounts of women named Salome in the Bible. One refers to a disciple of Jesus, who was present at his crucifixion, according to the Gospel of Mark.

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Mark 15:40–41 reads: “Some women were watching from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joseph,[a] and Salome. In Galilee these women had followed him and cared for his needs. Many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem were also there.”

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This Salome might have also been the mother of Jesus’ cousins and apostles James and John. In medieval times she was also referred to as Mary Salome; one of the Three Marys, she was the sister of Mary, mother of Jesus, and therefore his aunt.

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The tomb of Salome, thought to be the burial site of Salome the midwife, was discovered by grave robbers in 1982. Archaeological excavations began in 1984.

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The tomb of Jesus’ supposed midwife is located south-west of Jerusalem, in what is now Tel Lachish national park.

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The tomb, found among others in a larger burial complex, had the name Salome inscribed. The cave is believed to have been a place of Christian pilgrimage since the 5th century CE.

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The burial complex in which the tomb is located was likely built by a wealthy family back then. According to the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), "The family tomb attests that its owners were a family of high status in the Judean shefelah [lowlands] in the Second Temple period."

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In 2022, archaeologists started digging and unveiled some extraordinary finds, including an elaborate forecourt with walls filled with stone carvings.

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The entrance courtyard, which is some 3,767 square feet (350 square meters), also featured a mosaic floor.

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The entrance also featured carvings of rosettes, pomegranates, and acanthus vases (typical Jewish vases covered with ornamental leaves of the acanthus plant).

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The remains of market stalls and oil lamps, which were likely rented or sold to pilgrims during visits to the cave, were also found.

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“We believe that pilgrims would come here, rent an oil lamp, perform their prayers inside, and go on their way. It’s like today when you go to the grave of a revered rabbi and light a candle there,” said IAA archaeologist Zvi Firer.

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The tomb has “tonnes of inscriptions in ancient Greek and Syriac,” explained Firer. But it also features a number of inscriptions in Arabic.

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The objects found during the excavations date back to the 8th and 9th centuries, meaning that Christians were still using the tomb as a pilgrimage site for around 200 years after the Muslim conquest.

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An inscription in Greek reads “Zacharia Ben Kerelis, dedicated to the Holy Salome.” Archaeologists believe that this man was a wealthy Jewish patron who founded the construction of parts of the burial site.

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The tomb is not open to the public, but there are plans to do so as part of the Judean Kings Trail, which crosses the Judean Shefelah from Beersheba to Beit Guvrin and encompasses multiple archaeological sites.

Sources: (The Guardian) (The Times of Israel) (Live Science) (See the Holy Land) (Grunge)