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Historic statues and additional items have been taken from the National Museum of Syria in Damascus, sources confirm.

The theft was found on Monday, when museum workers reportedly found that one of the museum's doors had been forced from the interior.

The six taken pieces were crafted from marble and dated back to the Roman era, one official informed the news agency.

The nation's antiquities authority said it had opened an investigation to identify the "details surrounding the theft of a group of artifacts", and that steps had been enacted to strengthen protection and surveillance.

The head of internal security in the Damascus region, Brig-Gen Osama Atkeh, was referenced by the official media as saying that security forces were examining the theft, which he said had focused on several "historical artifacts and rare collectibles".

He added that guards at the museum and additional people were being questioned.

The cultural institution, which was founded in 1919, contains the significant historical artifacts in Syria.

It features clay cuneiform tablets originating to the 14th Century BC from an ancient city, where evidence of the most ancient linguistic system was uncovered; early centuries CE ancient art from Palmyra, among the foremost cultural centres of the historical period; and a ancient Jewish temple that was established at another archaeological site.

The museum was forced to close in 2012, twelve months after the beginning of the destructive conflict. Most of the artifacts was removed and stored at secure places to safeguard them.

It partially resumed in 2018 and completely reopened in early this year, a month after insurgents deposed the Assad regime.

Each of the six of nationally recognized sites were damaged or significantly impacted during the conflict.

The militant faction demolished multiple religious structures and additional edifices at the ancient city, claiming that they were un-Islamic. International authorities denounced the demolition as a atrocity.

Numerous cultural items were also lost or taken from dig sites and museums.