🔗 Share this article Historic Artifacts Taken from the National Museum Located in Damascus The Damascus Museum reopened fully in January of 2025, four weeks after the deposition of Syria's former leader. Historic statues and cultural objects have been removed from Syria's National Museum in Damascus, authorities report. The theft was noticed on Monday, when employees allegedly found that one of the museum's doors had been forced from the inside. The half-dozen taken sculptures were marble creations and originated to the Roman period, one official informed the media outlet. The nation's antiquities authority said it had launched a probe to determine the "events surrounding the loss of a collection of artifacts", and that actions had been implemented to improve protection and monitoring systems. The head of national security in Damascus province, Brig-Gen Osama Atkeh, was quoted by the government press as declaring that authorities were investigating the robbery, which he said had targeted several "archaeological statues and rare collectibles". He continued that museum protectors at the facility and other persons were being interrogated. The cultural institution, which was founded in the early twentieth century, houses the most important cultural treasures in the country. It contains historical records dating back to the 14th Century BC from historical site, where indications of the most ancient writing system was uncovered; 1st and 2nd Century AD classical statues from the ancient city, among the foremost historical locations of the ancient world; and a third century synagogue that was established at an ancient location. The museum was compelled to shut in the early 2010s, a year after the beginning of the internal strife. The majority of the artifacts was evacuated and preserved at undisclosed sites to safeguard them. It partially resumed in recent years and returned to normal in early this year, one month after opposition groups overthrew the Assad regime. Every one of nationally recognized sites were damaged or partially destroyed during the civil war. The IS organization destroyed multiple religious structures and historical sites at Palmyra, asserting that they were idolatrous. International authorities denounced the destruction as a atrocity. Countless cultural items were also destroyed or stolen from archaeological sites and collections.