[25] The 2nd-century Acts of John includes an apocryphal tale of the temple's destruction: the apostle John prayed publicly in the Temple of Artemis, exorcising its demons and "of a sudden the altar of Artemis split in many pieces... and half the temple fell down," instantly converting the Ephesians, who wept, prayed or took flight.[26]
Against this, a Roman edict of 162 AD acknowledges the importance of Artemesion, the annual Ephesian festival to Artemis, and officially extends it from a few holy days over March–April to a whole month, "one of the largest and most magnificent religious festivals in Ephesus' liturgical calendar".[27]
In 268 AD, according to Jordanes, a raid by the Goths, under their leaders "Respa, Veduc and Thurar",[28][29] "laid waste many populous cities and set fire to the renowned temple of Diana at Ephesus."[30] ; the extent and severity of the damage are unknown; the temple may have lain derelict until its official closure during the  persecution of pagans in the late Roman Empire,[31] Ammonius of Alexandria comments on its closure, perhaps as early as 407,[31] or no later than the mid 5th century. 