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Ancient artifacts and additional items have been stolen from the National Museum of Syria in the capital, officials say.

The theft was noticed on the start of the week, when staff apparently found that an entrance had been broken from the inside.

The six stolen statues were made of marble and dated back to the Roman period, one official informed the Associated Press.

The nation's antiquities authority said it had initiated an inquiry to determine the "circumstances surrounding the loss of a group of exhibits", and that actions had been taken to improve protection and monitoring systems.

The head of domestic security in the capital area, Security Chief Atkeh, was quoted by the government press as saying that law enforcement were probing the theft, which he said had targeted several "archaeological statues and rare collectibles".

He noted that security personnel at the facility and other individuals were being interrogated.

The cultural institution, which was created in 1919, holds the most important archaeological collection in Syria.

It contains historical records originating to the ancient era from Ugarit, where proof of the oldest known linguistic system was discovered; 1st and 2nd Century AD classical statues from the ancient city, one of the most important cultural centres of the classical era; and a ancient religious building that was constructed at another archaeological site.

The institution was compelled to shut in 2012, twelve months after the outbreak of the destructive conflict. The majority of the artifacts was evacuated and preserved at secret locations to protect them.

It partially resumed in recent years and returned to normal in the beginning of the year, four weeks after opposition groups deposed President Bashar al-Assad.

Each of the six of the country's cultural landmarks were harmed or partly ruined during the internal struggle.

The Islamic State group blew up numerous ancient buildings and other structures at the archaeological site, asserting that they were un-Islamic. International authorities condemned the damage as a war crime.

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