La Tène Culture, the late stage of an Iron Age culture in central and north-western Europe. It is named after La Tène, meaning The Shallows, a Celtic site at the eastern end of Lake Neuchâtel in Switzerland, where many iron weapons, implements, and jewellery were discovered in the mid-19th century. The period covered by La Tène follows that of the Hallstatt culture and extends from about 450 bc to the subjugation of Gaul by Julius Caesar in 58 bc.

La Tène culture was initially influenced by the Etruscan and Greek civilizations but developed regional variations through the centuries as the Celts spread throughout most of central and western Europe, over to Britain, north to Jutland, and elsewhere. Some unifying features of La Tène culture, however, are curvilinear ornamentation (S shapes and spirals) and the use of animal motifs in the decoration of metalwork. Burials were by inhumation or by covering with cairns of stones. The period was also characterized by incipient urbanization, new industries, and new artistic traditions.