In the late second century, and again in the second quarter of the third, there were notable recessions that mirrored difficulties experienced by the Empire at large,[1] houses had fallen down by the end of the 3rd century,[2] and the town was completely abandoned by the early 5th century.[7] The dry conditions that Karanis was left in are most suitable for the preservation of papyri,[8] and it is for this that Karanis is most well known by archaeologists.