The article is devoted to two versions of the tale about Cyrus' the Great childhood. The author compares Herodotus' and Xenophon's versions of the tale. The main event of Herodotus' version is a game, basilinda which has a sacral sense. Xenophon's version has six main events and the third event namely the conversation between Cyrus and his mother Mandane is a culmination of the tale. It is necessary to note the epics' influence on Xenophon's version, which becomes apparent in the attitude to the problem of truth and time in the tale.
