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Historic artifacts and cultural objects have been removed from the National Museum of Syria in Damascus, authorities report.

The robbery was noticed on Monday, when employees apparently found that one of the museum's doors had been broken from the inside.

The half-dozen missing statues were marble creations and traced back to the Roman era, an authority told the news agency.

Cultural heritage officials said it had opened an investigation to establish the "circumstances surrounding the disappearance of a group of items", and that actions had been taken to strengthen security and monitoring systems.

The chief of national security in the Damascus region, Security Chief Atkeh, was quoted by the state-run Sana news agency as saying that authorities were investigating the theft, which he said had affected several "historical artifacts and unique items".

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

The National Museum, which was founded in the early twentieth century, houses the most important historical artifacts in Syria.

It includes ancient inscribed tablets tracing back to the 14th Century BC from an ancient city, where indications of the most ancient linguistic system was uncovered; Greco-Roman period Greco-Roman sculptures from Palmyra, a significant historical locations of the historical period; and a 3rd Century AD Jewish temple that was constructed at an ancient location.

The facility was forced to close in 2012, twelve months after the start of the devastating civil war. Most of the holdings was evacuated and stored at secure places to ensure their safety.

It partially resumed in recent years and returned to normal in early this year, one month after rebel forces deposed President Bashar al-Assad.

Each of the six of nationally recognized sites were affected or partly ruined during the civil war.

The Islamic State group demolished multiple religious structures and historical sites at Palmyra, stating that they were against their beliefs. The cultural organization censured the destruction as a war crime.

Many artefacts were also lost or taken from archaeological sites and cultural institutions.