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Historic artifacts and other artefacts have been stolen from Syria's National Museum in the capital, authorities report.

The theft was noticed on Monday, when staff reportedly found that a doorway had been broken from the inside.

The half-dozen stolen statues were marble creations and originated to the Roman period, one official stated to the news agency.

Cultural heritage officials said it had opened an investigation to determine the "details surrounding the theft of a collection of items", and that actions had been taken to enhance safeguarding and surveillance.

The head of national security in the capital area, Brig-Gen Osama Atkeh, was referenced by the state-run Sana news agency as stating that authorities were examining the incident, which he said had affected several "archaeological statues and rare collectibles".

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

The cultural institution, which was established in the early twentieth century, contains the most important archaeological collection in the country.

It includes clay cuneiform tablets originating to the Bronze Age from historical site, where evidence of the most ancient complete alphabet was found; early centuries CE classical statues from the ancient city, among the foremost ancient sites of the ancient world; and a ancient synagogue that was established at an ancient location.

The institution was had to cease operations in the early 2010s, twelve months after the beginning of the devastating civil war. The majority of the collection was evacuated and kept at secure places to protect them.

It began limited operations in 2018 and returned to normal in the beginning of the year, a month after rebel forces overthrew President Bashar al-Assad.

Each of the six of Syria's Unesco World Heritage sites were affected or partially destroyed during the civil war.

The militant faction destroyed numerous ancient buildings and additional edifices at the archaeological site, stating that they were idolatrous. Unesco denounced the destruction as a atrocity.

Many historical objects were also lost or looted from archaeological sites and cultural institutions.