Ancient beliefs held garnet as a stone that supports loyalty, devotion and increased energy. Red garnets were known to cure anger and discord. Garnets were also used to cure inflammation and hemorrhaging.
Today Garnet is considered a powerful stone, increasing energy and regeneration. It purifies and balances energy and sex drive and supports emotional stability.
Garnet from the Gore Mountain / Ruby Mountain deposit is special indeed having a hardness of 8.5 on the Mohs scale. This is far harder than any other garnet on earth, at a hardness of 7.5. A cornerstone of the World Trade Center Memorial is a block of garnet bearing host rock from Ruby Mountain.