'Cave of Salome' Possibly Holds Ancient Royalty — And Not Jesus' Midwife, Claims New Study
Once a popular pilgrimage site for Christians, a cave southwest of Jerusalem in Israel has recently undergone reinvestigation. The new analysis resulted in some stunning insights regarding the individual buried inside the cave, according to Popular Mechanics. These findings regarding the "Cave of Salome" have been published in the Israel Antiquities Authority's journal Atiqot. For a long time, people believed the cave held a woman named Salome, associated with Jesus of Nazareth. She was mentioned in the apocryphal "Gospel of James," where Salome was informed of the "virgin birth" and later went to check on Mary.
Initially, she disbelieved the possibility of a "virgin birth," but after witnessing it herself, she started to seek atonement for her dismissive attitude. The new study suggests that the cave does hold someone named Salome. Instead, the woman buried here is not related to Jesus of Nazareth. She belonged to the Judean Royal family and had connections with the infamous Herod the Great from the New Testament. This assertion was made based on the ornaments and designs present in the cave, according to Live Science. These observations indicated that a member of the Judean Royal family was possibly buried at the site in the first century B.C. At that time, Judaea was under the control of the Roman Empire.
The cave was speculated to have belonged to someone called Salome based on an ossuary found at the site. Ossuary is a casket for bones, which, when discovered in the cave, carried the name. Salome was a biblical figure, often described as "Jesus' Midwife" amongst followers. Hence, the place became a popular destination for Christian pilgrims. The pilgrim visits continued until the ninth century B.C. After Jerusalem was conquered by the Islamic Caliphate, the cave got lost in history. Some 40 years ago, the place was rediscovered by looters. In 1984, IAA excavated the site and later included it on the Judean Kings Trail, a 60-mile-long (100 km) route connecting different archaeological sites in Central Israel.
Archaeologists observed a massive courtyard at the entrance of the cave, which indicated the cave could have been a monumental tomb. Furthermore, the presence of several luxurious villas near the site implied it belonged to an elite family rather than a woman with a humble background who witnessed Jesus Christ's birth. "The finely hewn ashlars, the monumental stone paving, and the decorations on the vestibule's facade and around the cave's entrance testify to the grandeur and high socioeconomic status of the burial estate's owners, raising a question regarding who built this magnificent estate," the study added, per the Daily Mail.
"Cave of Salome" has been identified as one of the most magnificent burial sites found in Israel. Researchers located many broken ossuaries and chambers at the site, all pointing towards Jewish burial tradition. Based on these findings, experts believe that the Salome buried inside the cave carried the Judean Royal lineage. Experts are sure of the Herod family connection because in the first century B.C., the unit had the economic strength to build such a sprawling structure. Moreover, Herod the Great was known to have invested in architecture within his kingdom. The team's leading theory is that the woman is Princess Salome, the sister of the Judaean king Herod the Great.
She was close to her brother and involved in political machinations during her lifetime. Another proposed possibility is that the woman is Herod's granddaughter, also named Salome, known in history for ordering the execution of John the Baptist. Experts, on their part, are not claiming their assertion to be final. The team has not even rejected the possibility of Salome being the Biblical "midwife." However, they do think that the findings indicate that there could be several other plausible identities of the "Salome" buried in the cave.