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Historic artifacts and additional items have been taken from Syria's National Museum in Damascus, officials say.

The theft was found on the start of the week, when staff allegedly found that one of the museum's doors had been damaged from the inside.

The six stolen sculptures were made of marble and traced back to the Roman era, an authority stated to the media outlet.

Cultural heritage officials said it had launched a probe to identify the "circumstances surrounding the theft of a number of artifacts", and that steps had been taken to improve safeguarding and observation methods.

The head of domestic security in the Damascus region, General Osama Atkeh, was referenced by the official media as saying that security forces were investigating the theft, which he said had targeted several "archaeological statues and unique items".

He continued that security personnel at the museum and other individuals were being questioned.

The cultural institution, which was founded in 1919, contains the primary cultural treasures in the country.

It features clay cuneiform tablets dating back to the ancient era from an ancient city, where proof of the most ancient complete alphabet was found; early centuries CE classical statues from historical site, among the foremost cultural centres of the historical period; and a third century Jewish temple that was established at another archaeological site.

The museum was had to cease operations in 2012, a year after the beginning of the devastating civil war. A large portion of the holdings was evacuated and preserved at undisclosed sites to protect them.

It reopened partially in 2018 and returned to normal in the beginning of the year, four weeks after opposition groups deposed President Bashar al-Assad.

Every one of nationally recognized sites were harmed or significantly impacted during the civil war.

The IS organization demolished multiple temples and historical sites at the archaeological site, asserting that they were against their beliefs. The cultural organization condemned the demolition as a violation.

Numerous historical objects were also lost or looted from historical locations and cultural institutions.