The Healing Shrine at Antinoopolis
Excavation of the sanctuary at Antinoopolis has uncovered abundant traces of the cult that developed around the martyr's relics. Pilgrims seeking relief from illness made use of special drinking water, of dream-incubation in which the saint was believed to appear and prescribe a remedy, and of washing in a healing bath. A collection of Coptic accounts of his miracles, thought to have been compiled in the sixth century, describes the presence of his bones at the shrine and the gifts offered in thanksgiving for healing.
In these accounts Colluthus is said to come to the sick in a dream at night, identifying himself with the words, 'I am Kollouthos, the physician.' Visitors to the shrine could also seek guidance about the future through oracular tickets, the so-called sortes sanctorum: a petitioner stated his question to the attendant, who matched it against a numbered list of the most commonly asked questions. The many votive objects and oracular tickets recovered from the site attest to the devotion the martyr inspired among the people of the region.