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Valuable sculptures and additional items have been removed from Syria's National Museum in the capital, sources confirm.

The theft was noticed on the start of the week, when staff allegedly found that one of the museum's doors had been forced from the interior.

The half-dozen missing sculptures were crafted from marble and dated back to the ancient Roman times, an authority told the Associated Press.

Syria's Directorate-General for Antiquities and Museums said it had opened an investigation to establish the "circumstances surrounding the disappearance of a collection of items", and that measures had been taken to improve protection and surveillance.

The director of internal security in Damascus province, Brig-Gen Osama Atkeh, was referenced by the government press as saying that law enforcement were probing the robbery, which he said had affected several "historical artifacts and valuable objects".

He continued that museum protectors at the museum and other individuals were being interrogated.

The Damascus Museum, which was established in 1919, holds the primary historical artifacts in Syria.

It includes clay cuneiform tablets tracing back to the Bronze Age from Ugarit, where evidence of the earliest complete alphabet was discovered; 1st and 2nd Century AD classical statues from the ancient city, among the foremost ancient sites of the historical period; and a third century Jewish temple that was established at another archaeological site.

The facility was had to cease operations in the early 2010s, a year after the outbreak of the devastating civil war. A large portion of the collection was evacuated and kept at secret locations to ensure their safety.

It reopened partially in recent years and resumed full operations in the beginning of the year, one month after insurgents overthrew President Bashar al-Assad.

All six of the country's cultural landmarks were affected or significantly impacted during the internal struggle.

The militant faction blew up several temples and historical sites at the ancient city, asserting that they were against their beliefs. Unesco denounced the destruction as a war crime.

Numerous cultural items were also destroyed or stolen from dig sites and cultural institutions.