Urulu, also known as Ayers Rock is a large rock rising from the vast desert area in the northern part of central Australia. This Australian emblematic sight has a height of 348m, and it reaches 8km in width. The Guinness Book of World Records included the monolith as the largest rock in the world.
Due to its historical significance this giant hill plays an important role in the religion of the local aborigines tribes. Urulu proudly stands in the Urulu-Kata Tjuta national park, which is 450 km away from Alice Springs, the nearest town in the area. Together with some 35 rocks it forms the so-called Olga, which is the most popular sight in the national park.
Five hundred million years ago Urulu was part of an ocean’s bottom. As a result of the oxidation of the rock, today its top layer has a red-ish color. Due to the different minerals in the rock structure, it can drastically change its color, depending on the weather conditions. It varies from purple-blue all the way to hot-red. This is what makes it attractive to thousands of tourists. They often attempt to climb the hill, which is an act that is not tolerated by the local tribe. The tribe’s name is Aranda, and Urulu is more than a sacred place for them. They believe that underneath the hill there is a huge opening, and in it is an energy source, which they refer to as “The dream time”. According to a legend the entire time one spends going around the rock, he/she is in a state of dreaming. Rock engravings depicting aborigines mythological pictures and signs could be seen in caves on the rock. They have been found to be tens of thousands of years old and have been renovated and preserved throughout the years.
