🔗 Share this article Historic Artifacts Stolen from the National Museum in Damascus The Damascus Museum resumed complete operations in January of this year, four weeks after the overthrow of Syria's former leader. Historic sculptures and cultural objects have been stolen from Syria's National Museum in the capital, authorities report. The robbery was found on Monday, when employees allegedly found that one of the museum's doors had been forced from the interior. The six taken statues were made of marble and dated back to the ancient Roman times, an authority told the media outlet. Cultural heritage officials said it had initiated an inquiry to establish the "events surrounding the loss of a number of exhibits", and that actions had been taken to improve safeguarding and observation methods. The director of domestic security in Damascus province, General Osama Atkeh, was cited by the government press as stating that authorities were investigating the incident, which he said had focused on several "historical artifacts and unique items". He added that security personnel at the museum and additional people were being interrogated. The cultural institution, which was established in 1919, contains the most important cultural treasures in Syria. It contains ancient inscribed tablets tracing back to the ancient era from an ancient city, where proof of the oldest known writing system was found; Greco-Roman period classical statues from Palmyra, one of the most important cultural centres of the historical period; and a third century religious building that was built at another archaeological site. The museum was had to cease operations in the early 2010s, twelve months after the outbreak of the devastating civil war. Most of the artifacts was evacuated and preserved at undisclosed sites to safeguard them. It partially resumed in 2018 and completely reopened in early this year, one month after insurgents deposed President Bashar al-Assad. All six of the country's cultural landmarks were affected or partly ruined during the civil war. The IS organization destroyed several religious structures and other structures at Palmyra, claiming that they were un-Islamic. The cultural organization denounced the destruction as a atrocity. Countless cultural items were also lost or looted from archaeological sites and museums.