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Historic sculptures and other artefacts have been removed from the National Museum of Syria in Damascus, sources confirm.

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

The six taken statues were crafted from marble and traced back to the ancient Roman times, an authority told the Associated Press.

The nation's antiquities authority said it had launched a probe to determine the "events surrounding the loss of a number of exhibits", and that measures had been taken to improve protection and surveillance.

The chief of domestic security in Damascus province, General Osama Atkeh, was cited by the state-run Sana news agency as saying that security forces were examining the incident, which he said had targeted several "historical artifacts and valuable objects".

He continued that guards at the facility and other individuals were being interviewed.

The Damascus Museum, which was established in the early twentieth century, contains the significant historical artifacts in Syria.

It features ancient inscribed tablets originating to the ancient era from an ancient city, where proof of the earliest complete alphabet was found; 1st and 2nd Century AD classical statues from Palmyra, among the foremost ancient sites of the classical era; and a 3rd Century AD religious building that was established at an ancient location.

The facility was compelled to shut in 2012, a year after the start of the destructive conflict. A large portion of the collection was removed and stored at secure places to safeguard them.

It reopened partially in recent years and resumed full operations in the beginning of the year, four weeks after insurgents removed Syria's former leader.

Every one of Syria's Unesco World Heritage sites were affected or significantly impacted during the civil war.

The Islamic State group destroyed several temples and historical sites at the archaeological site, stating that they were un-Islamic. The cultural organization condemned the destruction as a atrocity.

Many cultural items were also lost or taken from dig sites and cultural institutions.