The extraordinary quartz richness of the Roraima sandstones tells of a depositional history involving multiple cycles of reworking over geological time.

After deposition and lithification, the Roraima Supergroup was buried by younger sediments and subjected to the geological events of the subsequent two billion years — intrusion of igneous rocks in some areas, moderate metamorphism in others, and eventually the long-term erosion that has exposed the formation at the surface in the tepui highlands.

The specific process that produced the tepui plateau shape involves a combination of factors.

The quartzite sandstone of the Roraima Supergroup is more resistant to erosion than the surrounding basement rocks of the Guiana Shield.