Short answers, pulled from the story.
Women in ancient Rome were citizens but could not vote or hold political office. They could own property, write wills, and appear in court as early as the 5th century BC. Elite women could exercise influence through private negotiations, and some, like Livia Drusilla, served as imperial regents.
The Vestals were a college of six women who served as Rome's only full-time professional clergy. They prepared the ritual substance mola salsa required at official sacrifices and participated symbolically in every state sacrifice. Their vow of chastity bound them for thirty years; violation carried the penalty of being entombed alive. The order was dissolved by Christian emperors in the 4th century CE.
By the classical era, free marriage was the norm and caused no change in legal status for either spouse. A woman who was emancipated became sui iuris and could own and dispose of property independently. If a father died without a will, daughters had an equal right to inherit alongside sons. Under Augustus, a woman who bore three children gained the ius liberorum and was released from legal guardianship.
Women in ancient Rome worked across a wide range of professions documented by funerary inscriptions, court records, and archaeological finds. In Pompeii alone, named businesswomen included Naevoleia Tyche as an investor, Julia Felix as a real estate owner, Faustilla as a money lender, Eumachia as a factory owner and priestess, and Umbricia Fortunata as a fish sauce seller. Women also owned shipping corporations, brick factories, and practiced as scribes, calligraphers, and medical doctors.
The Lex Oppia was passed in 215 BCE following the Roman defeat at Cannae. It restricted women's possession and display of gold, silver, expensive clothing, and their use of chariots and litters. When the law came under review in 195 BCE, Cato the Censor argued for keeping it, but large numbers of Roman matrons made public protest in the streets. The law was abolished in 193 BCE. In 42 BCE, Roman women led by Hortensia successfully protested proposed taxes on women using the argument of no taxation without representation.
Livia Drusilla Augusta, who lived from 58 BCE to CE 29, was the most powerful woman in the early Roman Empire. She acted several times as regent and served as a consistent advisor to Augustus. Agrippina the Younger, her great-granddaughter, gained political influence under Claudius and Nero, and according to Tacitus listened to Senate proceedings from behind a curtain. Both women operated through unofficial channels, as women were formally excluded from all political offices.