David Ratzan

Dr. David Ratzan is Associate Professor of Ancient Studies and Head of the Library at NYU's Institute for the Study of the Ancient World. His research focuses on the social, economic, and legal history of Greek and Roman antiquity using papyrus manuscripts from Egypt.

Ratzan directs the NYU Amheida Excavations in Egypt's Dakhla Oasis. His scholarship examines ancient law, economic systems, and institutional frameworks, with particular attention to transaction costs, family structures, and dispute resolution mechanisms in Roman Egypt.

He co-edited volumes on fatherhood and maternal absence in antiquity. Ratzan teaches courses on Greco-Roman Egypt, ancient law and economics, and digital humanities methodologies for ancient studies.