The Arras culture is an archaeological culture of the Middle Iron Age in East Yorkshire, England. It takes its name from the cemetery site of Arras, at Arras Farm, near Market Weighton, which was discovered in the 19th century. The site spans three fields, bisected by the main east-west road between Market Weighton and Beverley, and is arable farmland; little to no remains are visible above ground. The extent of the Arras culture is loosely associated with the Parisi tribe of pre-Roman Britain. The culture is defined by its burial practices, which are uncommon outside East Yorkshire, but are found in continental Europe, and show some similarities with those of the La Tène culture. The inhumations include chariot burials, or burials in square enclosures, or both; in contrast to continental inhumations the cemeteries were crowded, not extended, and the chariots typically disassembled. The burials have been dated from the latter part of the 1st millennium BC to the Roman conquest (about 70 AD). The burial goods and chariot designs were primarily British in style, not continental. Many of the archaeological finds are in the Yorkshire Museum and the British Museum. Background The site was first investigated by a group of local gentry in 1815–1817, including William Watson, the Rev E. W. Stillingfleet, and Barnard Clarkson. Their investigations were detailed, encompassing the excavation of more than a hundred barrows in fields north and south of the Market Weighton to Beverley road, now the A1079. Many of the excavation details have been lost, but detailed recording was undertaken of four barrows with the richest grave goods. They were named the King's Barrow, the Queen's Barrow, the Lady's Barrow and the Charioteer's Barrow by the excavators. Work in 1850 by John Thurnam of the Yorkshire Antiquarian Club led to further investigations of these barrows; Thurnam published a report detailing the human remains from his excavation. Chariot burials The site of the Arras cemetery is about long and some 100 barrows were identified, four of which contained chariot burials. The name of the site lends itself to the culture, archaeologically based around chariot burials, across North and East Yorkshire. Other sites that are part of the Arras culture are so named because of the prevalence of cart-burials (two wheels) and / or wagon-burials (four wheels) or small finds similar to those from Arras which are otherwise rare or unique in the British Iron Age.