This is an instance of the truism that, when switching from one recording medium to another, there is always a considerable data loss. As the Roman empire declined, continuing preservation of early texts would be dependent on the efforts of the book copyists in the Middle Ages - and good luck. Are there any resemblances to our current digitization concerns?
Sara Ayad, The History of the Book in 100 Books: The Complete Story, From Egypt to E-Book
books, data-loss, digitization, preservation