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Actually, I'm not (personally) wholly convinced that there was a Virgin Mary. Extra-Biblical accounts of the existence of Mary, Joseph, and Jesus didn't start popping up until after they all would have died. For example, the St. John's fragment, which is generally considered to be one of the, if not the oldest record of Christianity, was probably written about 120 years after the supposed birth of Jesus.
Anyway, the story of a virgin giving birth to a savior predates Christianity significantly. Ra, Perseus, Romulus, Mithras, Krishna, Horus, and Melanippe are among many deities that were born of a god and a virgin. I'd argue it's one of the more common motifs in religious mythology.
This doesn't demonstrate absolutely that there wasn't a virgin birth, but I think it paints a clear picture of a more likely alternative.
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