Hōjōji Masahiro bore the surname Takigawa and is generally believed to have originated in Tajima Province. He later moved to , where his lineage "flourished greatly," producing accomplished smiths such as Sadakuni and Yoshitsugu; among them, "Masahiro stands foremost." The group is said to descend from the -period Hōjōji Kunimitsu. There were two generations using the name Masahiro, and both received the court title Ōmi no Kami. Their active periods are well established through dated works: the first generation bears inscriptions from the Shōō, Manji, and eras, while the second generation bears dates from the Enpō and Genroku eras. A key point of connoisseurship lies in the manner of the signature: the first generation's chiselwork has a "somewhat rough, staccato (kotsu-kotsu) feeling," whereas the second generation's is "calmer and more restrained." Specific variant forms within the characters for "mori," "," and "jō" provide further diagnostic markers. Their workmanship "closely resembles that of Nagasone Kotetsu," and the frequent presence of gold-inlaid cutting-test inscriptions ( ) by the Yamano family suggests that the Hōjōji group "had a fairly close relationship with the Kotetsu lineage."
The Hōjōji style is anchored in a -based temper into which and run together, forming a distinctive that hovers between straight and irregular. The enter frequently; the is deep; adheres thickly and evenly; fine and appear; and the is consistently bright. A characteristic manner "frequently seen" in this line is the appearance, at the crests of the temper (), of small -like forms, and works "not infrequently display intermingled ." The forging is typically or dense mixed with , with fine adhering thickly and fine entering -- though toward the base a tendency toward ō-hada or standing grain may appear. The construction presents its own distinguishing features, repeatedly identified across multiple : a conspicuously pronounced difference between base and tip widths, shallow , a compact (sometimes approaching ), a low , and thick with abundant . These structural traits allow the to discern "distinctive features of Hōjōji Masahiro's manner of construction" even within the broader context of -era conventions.
The evaluative consensus across nearly two dozen assessments holds that both generations produced "typical and representative" works of consistently good quality. The first generation in particular is praised for pieces in which adheres "evenly and without irregularity," the is bright, and enter with abundance -- works in which "Masahiro's true strengths are demonstrated without reserve." Both and are frequently described as (sound and well-preserved), with the brightness of the steel tone singled out as "especially pleasing." The second generation, while calmer in signature, maintains the family idiom with occasional departures toward a -like (rosary-bead) temper that recalls Battetsu. Within the tradition, the Hōjōji lineage occupies a distinctive position, closely allied to Nagasone Kotetsu yet possessing a recognizable individuality through its low , compact , and the quiet drama of and within a fundamentally -based aesthetic.