Are Government Seals Copyrighted?

[Maximilian Marck]

I'm working on my logo, and for the sake of simplicity and local credibility, I want my logo to be based on the country seal. I'm not trying to pretend to be a government agency, but I want to make it clear that I am local and work exclusively in this county. 

I'll be making some changes to the seal, but I'm not sure exactly how the law applies, and I definitely don't want to step into any gray areas.