Nikolai AleksandrovichNotovich (1858 – 1916), also known in the West as Nicolas Notovitch, was a Crimean Jewish adventurer and writer. He claimed to be a Russian aristocrat, spy and journalist. Notovitch is best known for his 1894 book about the unknown years of Jesus. Notovitch said, Jesus left Galilee for India and studied with Buddhists and Hindus before returning to Judea.