đŸ”— Share this article Valuable Sculptures Taken from Syria's National Museum Located in Damascus The Damascus Museum resumed complete operations in January of this year, four weeks after the deposition of President Bashar al-Assad. Valuable sculptures and additional items have been stolen from Syria's National Museum in Damascus, sources confirm. The theft was discovered on Monday, when staff reportedly found that an entrance had been broken from the inside. The multiple stolen sculptures were made of marble and dated back to the Roman era, a source informed the media outlet. The nation's antiquities authority said it had initiated an inquiry to establish the "circumstances surrounding the loss of a number of exhibits", and that steps had been enacted to strengthen safeguarding and monitoring systems. The director of domestic security in the Damascus region, General Osama Atkeh, was cited by the government press as saying that law enforcement were examining the robbery, which he said had affected several "ancient sculptures and rare collectibles". He noted that guards at the museum and other individuals were being interrogated. The Damascus Museum, which was established in the early twentieth century, contains the most important historical artifacts in the country. It contains historical records dating back to the 14th Century BC from an ancient city, where evidence of the earliest complete alphabet was uncovered; Greco-Roman period Greco-Roman sculptures from the ancient city, a significant historical locations of the ancient world; and a ancient religious building that was constructed at Dura Europos. The museum was forced to close in 2012, a year after the outbreak of the internal strife. A large portion of the holdings was removed and preserved at secure places to ensure their safety. It partially resumed in 2018 and resumed full operations in the beginning of the year, one month after insurgents removed President Bashar al-Assad. Every one of Syria's Unesco World Heritage sites were damaged or significantly impacted during the internal struggle. The Islamic State group destroyed multiple ancient buildings and additional edifices at the archaeological site, stating that they were un-Islamic. Unesco condemned the damage as a war crime. Countless cultural items were also destroyed or taken from dig sites and collections.