One single piece of sandstone, formed millennia ago from sediments laid down when central Australia was part of the great inland sea. Pressed, and pressed, and pressed; then, with a shift in the earth’s crust, tipped on her side and thrust upward until her nose peeked out of the soil, a giant tunneling mole just breaking the surface, extending 6.5 km below the surface. Uluru. Ayer’s Rock.