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Historic sculptures and cultural objects have been taken from Syria's National Museum in the capital, officials say.

The burglary was discovered on Monday, when employees reportedly found that one of the museum's doors had been damaged from the inside.

The six stolen sculptures were made of marble and dated back to the Roman period, a source informed the media outlet.

Syria's Directorate-General for Antiquities and Museums said it had opened an investigation to establish the "events surrounding the theft of a number of artifacts", and that actions had been taken to strengthen security and monitoring systems.

The chief of national security in the Damascus region, General Osama Atkeh, was referenced by the state-run Sana news agency as stating that security forces were investigating the theft, which he said had affected several "historical artifacts and unique items".

He added that museum protectors at the museum and other persons were being questioned.

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

It includes historical records tracing back to the ancient era from Ugarit, where indications of the oldest known complete alphabet was discovered; Greco-Roman period ancient art from the ancient city, among the foremost ancient sites of the ancient world; and a third century Jewish temple that was constructed at Dura Europos.

The facility was had to cease operations in 2012, a year after the outbreak of the devastating civil war. A large portion of the holdings was removed and kept at undisclosed sites to protect them.

It began limited operations in 2018 and resumed full operations in early this year, one month after opposition groups deposed President Bashar al-Assad.

All six of the country's cultural landmarks were harmed or significantly impacted during the civil war.

The IS organization blew up several temples and historical sites at Palmyra, asserting that they were idolatrous. Unesco denounced the demolition as a war crime.

Countless cultural items were also destroyed or taken from historical locations and cultural institutions.