Editing Women in ancient Rome (section)

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[[File:Vibia Sabina (Villa Adriana) 01.jpg|thumb|The educated and well-traveled [[Vibia Sabina]] (c. 136 AD) was a grand-niece of the emperor [[Trajan]] and became the wife of his successor [[Hadrian]]. <ref>Jasper Burns, "Sabina," in ''Great Women of Imperial Rome: Mothers and Wives of the Caesars'' (Routledge, 2007), pp. 124–140.</ref>]]
[[Freeborn (Ancient Rome)|Freeborn]] '''women in ancient Rome''' were [[Roman citizenship|citizens]] (''cives''),<ref>The form of [[Roman marriage]] called ''conubium'', for instance, requires that both spouses be citizens; like men from [[municipium|towns]] granted ''[[civitas|civitas sine suffragio]]'', women (at least those eligible for ''conubium'') were citizens without [[suffrage]]. The legal status of a mother as a citizen affected her son's citizenship. All Roman citizens recognized as such by law did not hold equal rights and privileges, particularly in regard to holding high office. See ''A Casebook on Roman Family Law'' following, and [[A.N. Sherwin-White]], ''Roman Citizenship'' (Oxford University Press, 1979), pp. 211 and [https://books.google.com/books?id=atzisLCgoPUC&pg=PA268 268] (on male citizenship as it relates to marrying citizen women) ''et passim''. ("children born of two Roman citizens") indicates that a Roman woman was regarded as having citizen status, in specific contrast to a ''[[Peregrinus (Roman)|peregrina]]''.</ref> but could not vote or hold [[Roman magistrate|political office]].<ref>Bruce W. Frier and Thomas A.J. McGinn, ''A Casebook on Roman Family Law'' (Oxford University Press: American Philological Association, 2004), pp. 31–32, 457, ''et passim''.</ref> Because of their limited public role, women are named less frequently than men by [[Roman historiography|Roman historians]]. But while Roman women held no direct political power, those from wealthy or powerful families could and did exert influence through private negotiations.<ref>[[Kristina Milnor]], "Women in Roman Historiography," in ''The Cambridge Companion to the Roman Historians'' (Cambridge University Press, 2009), p. 278; Ann Ellis Hanson, "The Restructuring of Female Physiology at Rome," in ''Les écoles médicales à Rome: Actes du 2<sup>ème</sup> Colloque international sur les textes médicaux latins antiques, Lausanne, septembre 1986'' (Université de Nantes, 1991), p. 256.</ref> Exceptional women who left an undeniable mark on history include [[Lucretia]] and [[Claudia Quinta]], whose stories took on [[Roman mythology|mythic significance]]; fierce [[Roman Republic|Republican-era]] women such as [[Cornelia Africana|Cornelia]], mother of the [[Gracchi]], and [[Fulvia]], who commanded an army and issued coins bearing her image; women of the [[Julio-Claudian dynasty]], most prominently [[Livia]] (58 BC – AD 29) and [[Agrippina the Younger]] (15–59 AD), who contributed to the formation of [[Roman Empire|Imperial]] ''[[mos maiorum|mores]]''; and the empress [[Helena (Empress)|Helena]] ({{circa}}250–330 AD), a driving force in promoting Christianity.<ref>Unless otherwise noted, this introductory overview is based on Beryl Rawson, "Finding Roman Women," in ''A Companion to the Roman Republic'' (Blackwell, 2010), p. 325.</ref>

[[Great Man theory|As is the case with male members of society]], elite women and their politically significant deeds eclipse those of lower status in the historical record. [[Epigraphy|Inscriptions]] and especially [[epitaph]]s document the names of a wide range of women throughout the Roman Empire, but often tell little else about them. Some vivid snapshots of daily life are preserved in [[Latin literature|Latin literary genres]] such as [[Roman comedy|comedy]], [[satire]], and poetry, particularly the poems of [[Catullus]] and [[Ovid]], which offer glimpses of women in Roman [[triclinium|dining rooms]] and boudoirs, at sporting and theatrical events, shopping, [[Cosmetics in Ancient Rome|putting on makeup]], practicing [[Magic in the Greco-Roman world|magic]], worrying about pregnancy—all, however, [[Male gaze|through male eyes]].<ref>Kelly Olson, "The Appearance of the Young Roman Girl," in ''Roman Dress and the Fabrics of Roman Culture'' (University of Toronto Press, 2008), p. 139.</ref> The published letters of [[Cicero]], for instance, reveal informally how the self-proclaimed great man interacted on the domestic front with his wife [[Terentia]] and daughter [[Tullia (daughter of Cicero)|Tullia]], as his speeches demonstrate through disparagement the various ways Roman women could enjoy a free-spirited sexual and social life.<ref>In reference to his character assassination of the notorious [[Clodia (wife of Metellus)|Clodia]]; see ''[[Pro Caelio]]''.</ref>

The one major public role reserved solely for women was in the sphere of [[Religion in ancient Rome|religion]]: the priestly office of the [[Vestals]]. Forbidden from marriage or sex for a period of thirty years, the Vestals devoted themselves to the study and correct observance of rituals which were deemed necessary for the security and survival of Rome but which could not be performed by the male [[Collegium (ancient Rome)|colleges]] of priests.<ref>For an extensive modern consideration of the Vestals, see Ariadne Staples, ''From Good Goddess to Vestal Virgins: Sex and Category in Roman Religion'' (Routledge, 1998).</ref>