were early eames lounges numbered?  

I have a '57 or '58 lounger...
I have a '57 or '58 lounger from vitra/contura and it has VII.III stamped on the seat. But yours is from Miller I guess.
Anyway, I always wondered what it means, probably we should check with the manufacturers...

pics
indeed, herman miller
pics of #s

and here
is mine:

your chair is in the way of...
your chair is in the way of that lovely photograph.

funny, caus, how crude that...
funny, caus, how crude that marking is!

Yeah, looks like workshop...
Yeah, looks like workshop vandalism

I'm glad it's hidden under...
I'm glad it's hidden under the cushion! I wonder if all the contura chairs have that kind of stamp, but there are so few it's hard to find one to compare.
There are also pencil-marks for the cushion hooks, it really looks more workshop- than factory made.

HM numbers
I'm pretty sure the numbers on the HM chairs are to prevent the matched shells from getting mixed up in the factory.

well, that makes sense...
well, that makes sense doesn't it?

Helmut Newton,
if I'm not mistaken.

No, only Plycraft numbered their shells...
Too bad for you, mate. Looks like you've been duped into purchasing a couple of knockoffs.

.
"up for auction is a spectacular pair of Eames for Herman Miller Rosewood lounge chairs with an ottoman in excellent original condition."
-ebay listing
The cushions don't even fit some of the frames properly.
(even it they are resting near their location and not clipped they fill their
shell location quite nice)
http://cgi.ebay.com/Pair-Eames-Herman-Miller-Rosewood-Lounge-Chairs-Otto...

correction
Herman Miller shells are indeed numbered on the inside of the shell, and that's the correct typeface for the imprint. Everything seems in order. Not sure why Lunchbox thinks otherwise.

honestly, poach...
I thought we were all on the same page here...
*wink wink*