I found this interesting cartographic knowledge visualization in Jamae mosque in Singapore. In this mosque, located in Chinatown, they make a great use of visualizations for illustrating concepts and information about the Islamic world and religion principles. It is certainly an interesting place to visit to learn more about Islamic religion: they offer pamphlets on several topics and the main praying hall is surrounded by well-crafted illustrations of how Muslim pray, historical background, information on culture, etc.
In the image below, a world map is used as a base to highlight the cultural and scientific contributions of Muslims around the world. It is a good example of how to blend pictures and text: images are used both as a mapping background and as explanatory icons.
Sabrina Bresciani, Ph.D. 
This is from 1001 inventions, you can check their site at 1001inventions.com