🔗 Share this article Valuable Artifacts Taken from the National Museum Located in Damascus The Damascus Museum reopened fully in January of 2025, four weeks after the overthrow of the Assad government. Ancient artifacts and additional items have been removed from the National Museum of Syria in Damascus, authorities report. The robbery was discovered on the start of the week, when employees reportedly found that a doorway had been damaged from the interior. The half-dozen taken sculptures were made of marble and originated to the Roman era, one official stated to the media outlet. Syria's Directorate-General for Antiquities and Museums said it had opened an investigation to identify the "events surrounding the theft of a collection of items", and that measures had been enacted to enhance protection and monitoring systems. The head of internal security in the Damascus region, Security Chief Atkeh, was quoted by the state-run Sana news agency as saying that law enforcement were investigating the robbery, which he said had focused on several "archaeological statues and valuable objects". He added that guards at the institution and other persons were being interviewed. The Damascus Museum, which was created in 1919, holds the most important cultural treasures in the country. It includes historical records originating to the ancient era from Ugarit, where indications of the most ancient complete alphabet was found; early centuries CE Greco-Roman sculptures from Palmyra, a significant ancient sites of the ancient world; and a ancient synagogue that was constructed at Dura Europos. The institution was had to cease operations in the early 2010s, twelve months after the start of the destructive conflict. Most of the holdings was evacuated and stored at secure places to safeguard them. It began limited operations in 2018 and completely reopened in the beginning of the year, four weeks after rebel forces removed the Assad regime. All six of Syria's Unesco World Heritage sites were damaged or partly ruined during the internal struggle. The militant faction blew up several temples and additional edifices at the archaeological site, claiming that they were idolatrous. Unesco denounced the destruction as a violation. Numerous historical objects were also damaged or looted from dig sites and museums.